Reading with a twist: Book I
by chinfev1203
Summary: Perseus Jackson and a few of his friends are sent to an unfamiliar house to read a bunch of books about the one and only Perseus Jackson. Along the way of finding out more about Percy, they meet new heroes that teach them a thing or two about the future. Reading just got fun for the demigods! Don't own the PJO & HoO characters, Rick Riordan owns them. xoxo
1. Introductions

INTRODUCTION

When the light finally died down the seven demigods, along with their other friends sat up groaning they looked around the room and saw that they were all seated on couches on a large and well lit room. In the middle of the room was a coffee table filled with books, above the books was a small note but before anyone could suggest that they should read the note a girl gasped and screamed.

"Leo!" Piper screamed and ran over to hug the aforementioned boy

"Jeez beauty queen, I need to breath you know" after he said that the girl hugging him suddenly slapped his right cheek

"Ow!" he said while clutching his cheek "What was that for?"

"If you do a stunt like that again, I swear I'm gonna hunt you down and kill you" she threatened and hugged Leo again

One by one the demigods hugged and slapped Leo, not noticing the caramel haired girl sitting next to Leo. After the slapping and hugging was done, Annabeth noticed the girl sitting next to Leo and asked "What's your name?"

Leo smiled and said "Everyone. This is Calypso"

Percy tensed and seemed to notice the girl for the first time

"Wait…" Rachel started "Calypso as in…?"

"Yep" Leo Smiled

"Calypso this is everybody, Piper, Jason, Nico, Thalia, Rachel, Hazel, Frank, Reyna, Grover, Annabeth, and of course you've already met Percy" Leo said as he introduced Calypso to everyone present in the room

"What do you mean you've already met Percy?" Thalia asked while turning to Percy

"I.. uh.." he said while rubbing the back of his neck "its a long story I'll tell you later"

Before someone could protest, Rachel noticed the books with the note and said "Hey guys! Check this out"

"Dear Oracle, Demigods, Satyr, and Calypso,

We have brought you here to read a few books that we have selected for a purpose that we would no longer disclose. Rest assured, time is frozen while you are reading these books.

From the three fates

"I guess were reading some books" Annabeth said "What does the title say Rachel?"

"Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief" Rachel read and looked at Percy

"That's about me?" Percy asked

"Guess so kelp head" Thalia said " So who's reading first?"

"I'll do it" Annabeth said

They all sat down to read the books but before they could there was another blinding light and at the middle of the room stood four demigods who looked about sixteen years old, dressed in orange Camp Half-Blood t-shirts, who all had their weapons drawn.

One girl had a sword and a shield, the other girl had a dagger, one boy had a sword while the other had a bow and arrow. They looked around the room until one of the girls gasped and told her friends to put down their weapons. The girl and boy holding their swords looked at each other and had a silent conversation. "Uhm what year is it?" the girl holding the sword who had black hair and sea green eyes asked

Annabeth answered the girl while at the same time was thinking that this girl looked very familiar, she just couldn't remember who she is.

"Oh my gods" the girl holding the dagger who had blond hair muttered she faced her blond haired boy who was holding a sword and said "We got sent back to the past!"

"Wait" Annabeth said "What year are you from and who are you"

The black haired girl told them the year where they were from and the demigods gasped. The kids were from the future. "Who are you?" Annabeth repeated

"I don't know if we should tell" the black haired girl said looking at her friends

Suddenly there was another flash of bright light when it died down, there was a note floating above the coffee table. Rachel took the note and said "It says the four of you can tell us your names and your parentage" the black haired girl looked at Rachel and then at the note and shrugged

"Before we do that" she started "Can someone please tell us why we are here?"

Rachel handed the girl the first note which she gladly took and passed it to her friends

"Well I guess we have to introduce ourselves" the blonde haired boy said "Who's going first?"

"I'll do it" the black haired boy who had a bow and arrow said, who spoke for the first time

"Nick Montgomery" he said "Son of Apollo" he then looked at his three friends who were still having a silent conversation

"Hey guys!" he yelled at the three "your turn"

The three looked among themselves until the blond haired boy and girl pushed the black haired girl forward

"Hey! Why do I have to go first?" she said and glared at the two who just shrugged and looked at the empty couch, the two sat down, and dragged Nick along with them.

"So?" Thalia asked "What's your name" she too was thinking that this girl looked familiar

"My names Trina" she said and started to make her way to the couch

"and your godly parent is?" Piper asked

Trina rolled her eyes and sat down between Nick and the blond boy "Oh I don't have a godly parent" she said and shrugged

"Are you a mortal?" Nico asked

"Nope" the girl answered and looked like she was enjoying having the demigods confused

"What are you?" Leo asked

The girl finally smiled and responded "My name is Trina Alana Chase Jackson, daughter of the one and only Annabeth Chase and Percy Jackson"

All the demigods gasped and looked at the said couple who were now starring at the girl who introduced herself as their daughter "What?" the couple said at the same time

"I'm your daughter, from the future, now can we please finish the introductions" she said and looked pointedly at the her two blonde friends who looked like twins

"My names Josh" the blond boy started and pointed at the blond girl beside her "and this is my twin sister"

"I'm Jessica, but you can call me Jessy" she said "Our last names Grace"

"As in.." Thalia started and looked at her brother

"As in Jason Grace, Yea, he's our dad" Josh said

Piper looked at the twins and asked "and your mom is?"

"You" Jessy said and rolled her eyes "Who else would it be?"

"oh my gods" Piper said and looked at Jason who was beside her, he was currently starring at the twins

"Do you need us to introduce ourselves too?" Frank asked

"No need" Jessy said "We know all of you already"

"I don't" Nick said

"Well then, let's introduce ourselves I guess" Grover said and the introductions began once they were finished they looked at each other until Trina started talking

"So" Trina started "Are we reading those books or what?"

"Right" Annabeth said taking her eyes off Trina and and looking at the book

Trina and her three friends hid their weapons to their compact forms. Nick's bow and arrow became a small black box, while Trina's sword went back to bracelet form, Jessy's dagger shrunk until it was the size of a hair clip, which she placed on her hair, while Josh's sword transformed to a coin.

"Is that Ivlivs?" Jason asked

"Yeah" Josh tossed Jason the coin which he caught but was now transformed back to a sword

"Not the original, but a close copy" Josh said "Uncle Leo made it for my tenth birthday"

"I made that?" Leo asked "AWESOME!"

With that said Annabeth decided to start reading the book.

"Chapter 1 I ACCIDENTALLY VAPORIZE MY PRE-ALGEBRA TEACHER" Annabeth read


	2. Chapter 1: Annabeth

**1.** **I ACCIDENTALLY VAPORIZE MY PRE-ALGEBRA TEACHER** Annabeth read

Everyone looked at Percy

 **Look, I didn't want to be a half-blood.**

"Who does?" Nico asked

 **If you're reading this because you think you might be one, my advice is:**

"Oh No" Trina muttered

"Your dad actually gives good advice" Josh said

"When did he give you advice?" Trina asked

"That is top secret information"Josh said

"I agree with Trina" Thalia said "Kelp Head giving off advice is not good"

"Hey!" Percy said "at least someone here has faith in me" he said smiling at Josh

He was gonna like this kid, Percy thought

 **close this book right now. Believe whatever lie your mom or dad told you about your birth, and try to lead a normal life.**

"That's not actually a bad advice" Piper said

 **Being a half-blood is dangerous. It's scary. Most of the time, it gets you killed in painful, nasty ways.**

"Very very nasty ways" Thalia said while thinking about how she got turned to a pine tree

 **If you're a normal kid, reading this because you think it's fiction, great. Read on. I envy you for being able to believe that none of this ever happened.**

 **But if you recognize yourself in these pages—if you feel something stirring inside—stop reading immediately.**

"Okay lets stop" Grover said "who wants to find out if we have something to eat around here?"

Annabeth glared at him and continued reading

 **You might be one of us. And once you know that, it's only a matter of time before they sense it too, and they'll come for you.**

 **Don't say I didn't warn you.**

"You didn't" Leo said

 **My name is Percy Jackson.**

"Nope. Its Peter Johnson!" Thalia and Trina both said at the same time

The two girls looked at each other and laughed

 **I'm twelve years old. Until a few months ago, I was a boarding student at Yancy Academy, a private school for troubled kids in upstate New York.**

 **Am I a troubled kid?**

"Yes" almost everyone in the room muttered which caused Percy to glare at them

 **Yeah. You could say that.**

"See. Even you agree" Hazel said

 **I could start at any point in my short miserable life**

"Your life is not short and miserable" Trina said "I'm proof of that"

The demigods looked at her "What?" she asked "If he's life was short, I would have never been born!"

"Good Point" Percy said

 **to prove it, but things really started going bad last May, when our sixth-grade class took a field trip to Manhattan— twenty-eight mental-case kids and two teachers on a yellow school bus, heading to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to look at ancient Greek and Roman stuff.**

"Ohh I love that place" Trina said and Annabeth nodded

 **I know—it sounds like torture. Most Yancy field trips were.**

"Wait a sec" Thalia said and looked at Trina "How much did you get from Annabeth?"

"What do you mean?" Percy asked

"I mean, she looks more of like a Percy with the hair and the eyes but, I'm sure were all wondering if she got your kelp head brain or Annabeth's wise brain" Thalia said

"Trina's a smarty pants" Nick said

"Oh that's a relief!" Thalia said "We do not need another Kelp Head"

"Wait till you meet my sister" Trina laughed

"There's another one?" Percy asked

"Yeah. I have a little sister, she's nine years old." Trina said

"Are there more?" Annabeth asked

"Nope. You only have two precious daughters." Trina answered "For now at least"

 **But Mr. Brunner, our Latin teacher, was leading this trip, so I had hopes.**

"Doesn't Chiron use that name?" Nick asked  
"Yeah he does" Josh answered

 **Mr. Brunner was this middle-aged guy in a motorized wheelchair. He had thinning hair and a scruffy beard and a frayed tweed jacket, which always smelled like coffee. You wouldn't think he'd be cool, but he told stories and jokes and let us play games in class. He also had this awesome collection of Roman armor and weapons, so he was the only teacher whose class didn't put me to sleep.**

"You sleep in class?" Annabeth asked

"Almost all the time Annabeth" Grover said

"How do you know?" Frank asked

"I was there" Grover said

 **I hoped the trip would be okay. At least, I hoped that for once I wouldn't get in trouble.**

"You just jinxed it" Reyna said

 **Boy, was I wrong.**

 **See, bad things happen to me on field trips. Like at my fifth-grade school, when we went to the Saratoga battlefield, I had this accident with a Revolutionary War cannon. I wasn't aiming for the school bus, but of course I got expelled anyway. And before that, at my fourth-grade school, when we took a behind-the-scenes tour of the Marine World shark pool, I sort of hit the wrong lever on the catwalk and our class took an unplanned swim. And the time before that. . . Well, you get the idea.**

Everyone was rolling on the floor laughing, while Percy felt a bit embarrassed

 **This trip, I was determined to be good.**

"How'd that work out for you?" Hazel asked

 **All the way into the city, I put up with Nancy Bobofit, the freckly, redheaded kleptomaniac girl, hitting my best friend Grover in the back of the head with chunks of peanut butter-and-ketchup sandwich.**

Everyone looked at Grover

"Why didn't you hit her?" Thalia asked

"and get Percy in trouble? No way!" Grover exclaimed

 **Grover was an easy target. He was scrawny. He cried when he got frustrated. He must've been held back several grades, because he was the only sixth grader with acne and the start of a wispy beard on his chin. On top of all that, he was crippled.**

"I really love your description about me Perce" Grover said sarcastically "Really, I do"

"Sorry" Percy said

 **He had a note excusing him from PE for the rest of his life because he had some kind of muscular disease in his legs. He walked funny, like every step hurt him, but don't let that fool you. You should've seen him run when it was enchilada day in the cafeteria.**

Everyone laughed at that

 **Anyway, Nancy Bobofit was throwing wads of sandwich that stuck in his curly brown hair, and she knew I couldn't do anything back to her because I was already on probation. The headmaster had threatened me with death**

"With death?" Nico asked

"Wait for it" Percy said

 **by in-school suspension if anything bad, embarrassing, or even mildly entertaining happened on this trip.**

 **"I'm going to kill her," I mumbled.**

"I'll come with you" Thalia said and Annabeth nodded

 **Grover tried to calm me down. "It's okay. I like peanut butter. "**

"Tyson loves it more though" Grover said

"Who's Tyson" Nick asked

"He's a cyclopes, son of Poseidon" Trina said

"So your uncle?" Nick asked

"Uh…Yeah? Kind of" Trina said

 **He dodged another piece of Nancy's lunch.**

 **"That's it. " I started to get up, but Grover pulled me back to my seat.**

 **"You're already on probation," he reminded me. "You know who'll get blamed if anything happens. "**

"Kind of like a conversation between you two" Jessy said while looking at Josh and Trina

"What do you mean?" Jason asked

"They keep each other out of trouble" Jessy answered

"Do you two get in trouble a lot?" Piper asked

"She does" Josh said pointing at Trina which earned him a punch in the shoulder

"OW!"

 **Looking back on it, I wish I'd decked Nancy Bobofit right then and there. In-school suspension would've been nothing compared to the mess I was about to get myself into.**

 **Mr. Brunner led the museum tour.**

 **He rode up front in his wheelchair, guiding us through the big echoey galleries, past marble statues and glass cases full of really old black-and-orange pottery.**

 **It blew my mind that this stuff had survived for two thousand, three thousand years.**

 **He gathered us around a thirteen-foot-tall stone column with a big sphinx on the top, and started telling us how it was a grave marker, a stele, for a girl about our age. He told us about the carvings on the sides. I was trying to listen to what he had to say, because it was kind of interesting, but everybody around me was talking, and every time I told them to shut up, the other teacher chaperone, Mrs. Dodds, would give me the evil eye.**

"Why do I feel like I know Mrs. Dodds?" Nico asked

"You kind of do" Percy said

 **Mrs. Dodds was this little math teacher from Georgia who always wore a black leather jacket, even though she was fifty years old. She looked mean enough to ride a Harley right into your locker. She had come to Yancy halfway through the year, when our last math teacher had a nervous breakdown.**

"Is she…?" Nico asked

Percy and Nico had a silent conversation which confirmed Nico's suspicions

 **From her first day, Mrs. Dodds loved Nancy Bobofit and figured I was devil spawn. She would point her crooked finger at me and say, "Now, honey," real sweet, and I knew I was going to get after-school detention for a month.**

 **One time, after she'd made me erase answers out of old math workbooks until midnight, I told Grover I didn't think Mrs. Dodds was human. He looked at me, real serious, and said, "You're absolutely right. "**

"You just blew your cover Grover" Thalia said

 **Mr. Brunner kept talking about Greek funeral art.**

 **Finally, Nancy Bobofit snickered something about the naked guy on the stele, and I turned around and said, "Will you shut up?"**

 **It came out louder than I meant it to.**

"Of course it did" Annabeth said and went back to reading

 **The whole group laughed. Mr. Brunner stopped his story.**

 **"Mr. Jackson," he said, "did you have a comment?"**

 **My face was totally red. I said, "No, sir. "**

 **Mr. Brunner pointed to one of the pictures on the stele. "Perhaps you'll tell us what this picture represents?"**

 **I looked at the carving, and felt a flush of relief, because I actually recognized it.**

"You actually knew something?" Rachel asked laughing

"Oh shut up" Percy grumbled

 **"That's Kronos eating his kids, right?"**

Calypso who was being quiet listened more attentively at the mention of Kronos

 **"Yes," Mr. Brunner said, obviously not satisfied. "And he did this because . . . "**

 **"Well. . . " I racked my brain to remember. "Kronos was the king god, and—"**

"god?" Jessy asked

 **"God?" Mr. Brunner asked.**

"You think like him" Josh said which got him a punch from his sister

 **"Titan," I corrected myself. "And . . . he didn't trust his kids, who were the gods.**

"I don't think trust is the right word Percy" Calypso said

 **So, um, Kronos ate them, right? But his wife hid baby Zeus, and gave Kronos a rock to eat instead.**

"So Zeus looks like a rock?" Leo asked everyone "Does Thalia and Jason look like a rock?"

"Why would we look like a rock Leo?" Jason asked

"Because your dad is Zeus and he looked like a rock?"

"Keep reading Annabeth" Thalia muttered

 **And later, when Zeus grew up, he tricked his dad, Kronos, into barfing up his brothers and sisters—"**

"Gross" Jessy said

 **"Eeew!" said one of the girls behind me.**

 **"—and so there was this big fight between the gods and the Titans," I continued, "and the gods won. "**

"That's it?" Trina asked "you managed to summarize that into one paragraph?"

Percy shrugged and gestured for Annabeth to continue reading

 **Some snickers from the group.**

 **Behind me, Nancy Bobofit mumbled to a friend, "Like we're going to use this in real life. Like it's going to say on our job applications, 'Please explain why Kronos ate his kids. '"**

 **"And why, Mr. Jackson," Brunner said, "to paraphrase Miss Bobofit's excellent question, does this matter in real life?"**

"Busted" Grover said

 **"Busted," Grover muttered.**

"A few years into the future and you still have the same thoughts" Rachel said

 **"Shut up," Nancy hissed, her face even brighter red than her hair.**

 **At least Nancy got packed, too. Mr. Brunner was the only one who ever caught her saying anything wrong. He had radar ears.**

 **I thought about his question, and shrugged. "I don't know, sir. "**

 **"I see. " Mr. Brunner looked disappointed. "Well, half credit, Mr. Jackson. Zeus did indeed feed Kronos a mixture of mustard and wine, which made him disgorge his other five children, who, of course, being immortal gods, had been living and growing up completely undigested in the Titan's stomach. The gods defeated their father, sliced him to pieces with his own scythe, and scattered his remains in Tartarus, the darkest part of the Underworld. On that happy note, it's time for lunch. Mrs. Dodds, would you lead us back outside?"**

"That was not really a happy note" Calypso muttered under her breath

 **The class drifted off, the girls holding their stomachs, the guys pushing each other around and acting like doofuses.**

"When are guys not doofuses?" Reyna asked

 **Grover and I were about to follow when Mr. Brunner said, "Mr. Jackson. "**

 **I knew that was coming.**

 **I told Grover to keep going. Then I turned toward Mr. Brunner. "Sir?"**

 **Mr. Brunner had this look that wouldn't let you go— intense brown eyes that could've been a thousand years old and had seen everything.**

"That's Chiron isn't it?" Piper asked

Percy and Grover nodded

 **"You must learn the answer to my question," Mr. Brunner told me.**

 **"About the Titans?"**

 **"About real life. And how your studies apply to it. "**

 **"Oh. "**

 **"What you learn from me," he said, "is vitally important. I expect you to treat it as such. I will accept only the best from you, Percy Jackson. "**

"He did get the best that dad had" Trina said

Percy smiled at his supposed to be daughter

 **I wanted to get angry, this guy pushed me so hard.**

"It was for your own good" Annabeth said

 **I mean, sure, it was kind of cool on tournament days, when he dressed up in a suit of Roman armor and shouted: "What ho!'" and challenged us, sword-point against chalk, to run to the board and name every Greek and Roman person who had ever lived, and their mother, and what god they worshipped. But Mr. Brunner expected me to be as good as everybody else, despite the fact that I have dyslexia and attention deficit disorder and I had never made above a C– in my life. No—he didn't expect me to be as good; he expected me to be better. And I just couldn't learn all those names and facts, much less spell them correctly.**

"Neither could I" Nick said

"See!" Percy said looking at Annabeth "I'm not the only one who thinks that"

"I wasn't going to say that you were the only one Percy" Annabeth answered

 **I mumbled something about trying harder, while Mr. Brunner took one long sad look at the stele, like he'd been at this girl's funeral.**

"He probably was" Leo said

 **He told me to go outside and eat my lunch.**

"Can we eat Lunch?" Grover asked Annabeth

"We don't even know if there's food here"

"I don't think the fates would let us starve, would they?" Hazel asked

There was another bright light that left a note that said

 ** _"_** ** _We forgot to tell you, there is a kitchen, a dining room, a few bedrooms, and other rooms that you might find useful in this house. There will be food every time you enter the kitchen and feel free to choose the room best suited for you, each of you will have your own room_**

 ** _From the three fates"_** Frank finished reading the note and said "Well that answers our question"

"We can eat after this chapter is done" Annabeth said

 **The class gathered on the front steps of the museum, where we could watch the foot traffic along Fifth Avenue.**

 **Overhead, a huge storm was brewing, with clouds blacker than I'd ever seen over the city.**

"Why is dad so mad?" Jason asked Percy

"You'll see" Percy answered

 **I figured maybe it was global warming or something, because the weather all across New York state had been weird since Christmas. We'd had massive snow storms, flooding, wildfires from lightning strikes. I wouldn't have been surprised if this was a hurricane blowing in.**

"He's really really mad" Jason muttered

 **Nobody else seemed to notice. Some of the guys were pelting pigeons with Lunchables crackers. Nancy Bobofit was trying to pickpocket something from a lady's purse, and, of course, Mrs. Dodds wasn't seeing a thing.**

"of course she wasn't" Hazel said

 **Grover and I sat on the edge of the fountain, away from the others. We thought that maybe if we did that, everybody wouldn't know we were from that school—the school for loser freaks who couldn't make it elsewhere.**

"You made it somewhere" Trina said

 **"Detention?" Grover asked.**

 **"Nah," I said. "Not from Brunner. I just wish he'd lay off me sometimes. I mean—I'm not a genius. "**

"One of the truest words I've ever heard you say" Trina said "wait a second"

She pulled out a notebook from her back pocket and started writing something

"What are you doing?" Percy asked

"Blackmail material for the future you" Trina said "I might get some extra cash because of this"

"You dating a Hermes kid or something?" Percy asked, wondering how he's daughter learned to blackmail her own father

"Hermes kids aren't my type" Trina said

Annabeth and Piper noticed that both Nick and Josh perked up at the mention of Trina dating somebody

"What is your type?" Nick asked which caused Jessy to bit back a laugh and for Josh to look at Trina

"None of you business" Trina said

"Really now?" Josh asked smirking

"Shut up" Trina said

"Please keep reading mommy" Trina said and looked at Annabeth

"That sounded weird" Annabeth said and continued reading

 **Grover didn't say anything for a while. Then, when I thought he was going to give me some deep philosophical comment to make me feel better, he said, "Can I have your apple?"**

Everyone laughed

"Typical Grover" Thalia said

 **I didn't have much of an appetite, so I let him take it.**

 **I watched the stream of cabs going down Fifth Avenue, and thought about my mom's apartment, only a little ways uptown from where we sat. I hadn't seen her since Christmas. I wanted so bad to jump in a taxi and head home. She'd hug me and be glad to see me, but she'd be disappointed, too. She'd send me right back to Yancy, remind me that I had to try harder, even if this was my sixth school in six years and I was probably going to be kicked out again. I wouldn't be able to stand that sad look she'd give me.**

"How's my mom?" Percy asked Trina

"Grandma's great" Trina answered "She published a book last month"

 **Mr. Brunner parked his wheelchair at the base of the handicapped ramp. He ate celery while he read a paperback novel. A red umbrella stuck up from the back of his chair, making it look like a motorized cafe table.**

"Maybe I can build something like that" Leo said

"You already did" Josh said "In our time anyways"

Leo smiled and started playing with his tools

 **I was about to unwrap my sandwich when Nancy Bobofit appeared in front of me with her ugly friends—I guess shed gotten tired of stealing from the tourists—and dumped her half-eaten lunch in Grovers lap.**

Thalia growled in anger

 **"Oops. " She grinned at me with her crooked teeth. Her freckles were orange, as if somebody had spray-painted her face with liquid Cheetos.**

"Very attractive" Rachel muttered

 **I tried to stay cool. The school counselor had told me a million times, "Count to ten, get control of your temper.**

"Does that ever work for you?" Reyna asked

"Sometimes" Percy answered

 **" But I was so mad my mind went blank. A wave roared in my ears.**

Everyone looked at Percy, then at his daughter

"Does that ever happen to you too?" Grover asked

"I wouldn't be his daughter if it didn't" she answered

"She did that to me so many times" Nick grumbled

"What did you do to get her really mad?" Piper asked

Trina glared at him before he could answer

"I'd rather not say" Nick finally answered

 **I don't remember touching her, but the next thing I knew, Nancy was sitting on her butt in the fountain, screaming, "Percy pushed me!"**

"That was awesome!" Leo screamed

 **Mrs. Dodds materialized next to us.**

"That not so much" Leo muttered

 **Some of the kids were whispering: "Did you see—"**

 **"—the water—"**

 **"—like it grabbed her—"**

 **I didn't know what they were talking about. All I knew was that I was in trouble again.**

"You're always in trouble" Annabeth muttered

 **As soon as Mrs. Dodds was sure poor little Nancy**

"Poor little Nancy?" Hazel scoffed "She deserved it after bullying Grover"

Grover smiled at Hazel

 **was okay, promising to get her a new shirt at the museum gift shop, etc. , etc. , Mrs. Dodds turned on me. There was a triumphant fire in her eyes, as if Id done something shed been waiting for all semester. "Now, honey—"**

 **"I know," I grumbled. "A month erasing workbooks. "**

"Tsk Tsk Percy" Leo said "Never guess your punishment"

 **That wasn't the right thing to say.**

"You think?" Frank scoffed

 **"Come with me," Mrs. Dodds said.**

 **"Wait!" Grover yelped. "It was me. I pushed her. "**

"Aw that was so nice of you Grover" Hazel said

"It was my job" Grover said "I had to keep Percy safe"

"And you did a very good job at it Grover" Annabeth said smiling at him

 **I stared at him, stunned. I couldn't believe he was trying to cover for me. Mrs. Dodds scared Grover to death.**

 **She glared at him so hard his whiskery chin trembled.**

 **"I don't think so, Mr. Underwood," she said.**

 **"But—"**

 **"You—will—stay—here. "**

 **Grover looked at me desperately.**

 **"Its okay, man," I told him. "Thanks for trying. "**

 **"Honey," Mrs. Dodds barked at me. "Now. "**

 **Nancy Bobofit smirked.**

"Please tell me you wiped that smirked off her face?" Thalia asked

"I wish" Percy said

 **I gave her my deluxe Ill-kill-you-later stare.**

"Ohh scary" Thalia said rolling her eyes "Mine is so much better"

"Wanna bet?" Percy asked and glared at her

Trina groaned "Can we please just agree that Mom has the much better 'I'll kill you later stare'?"

"It's still weird when you call me Mom" Annabeth said

"It'll be even weirder for me if I call you Annabeth" Trina said "That would be so disrespectful"

 **Then I turned to face Mrs. Dodds, but she wasn't there. She was standing at the museum entrance, way at the top of the steps, gesturing impatiently at me to come on.**

 **How'd she get there so fast?**

"I'd like to know too" Calypso said

 **I have moments like that a lot, when my brain falls asleep or something, and the next thing I know I've missed something, as if a puzzle piece fell out of the universe and left me staring at the blank place behind it. The school counselor told me this was part of the ADHD, my brain misinterpreting things.**

"Just curious" Piper started "Do the three of you have dyslexia and ADHD too?" she asked Josh, Jessy and Trina

"Trina and I do, Josh only has ADHD" Jess answered "Which is really unfair"

 **I wasn't so sure.**

 **I went after Mrs. Dodds.**

 **Halfway up the steps, I glanced back at Grover. He was looking pale, cutting his eyes between me and Mr. Brunner, like he wanted Mr. Brunner to notice what was going on, but Mr. Brunner was absorbed in his novel.**

"I wonder what he was reading" Annabeth said

 **I looked back up. Mrs. Dodds had disappeared again. She was now inside the building, at the end of the entrance hall.**

 **Okay, I thought. Shes going to make me buy a new shirt for Nancy at the gift shop.**

 **But apparently that wasn't the plan.**

"Plans don't really go the way they are supposed to" Frank said

"They do, if Annabeth plans them" Percy said looking at his girlfriend who continued reading

 **I followed her deeper into the museum. When I finally caught up to her, we were back in the Greek and Roman section.**

 **Except for us, the gallery was empty.**

"That's bad" Hazel said

 **Mrs. Dodds stood with her arms crossed in front of a big marble frieze of the Greek gods. She was making this weird noise in her throat, like growling.**

"And another bad sign" Frannk said

 **Even without the noise, I would've been nervous. Its weird being alone with a teacher, especially Mrs. Dodds. Something about the way she looked at the frieze, as if she wanted to pulverize it. . .**

"I have a feeling she really did want it pulverized" Nico said

 **"You've been giving us problems, honey," she said.**

 **I did the safe thing. I said, "Yes, maam. "**

 **She tugged on the cuffs of her leather jacket. "Did you really think you would get away with it?"**

"Get away with what?" Reyna asked

 **The look in her eyes was beyond mad. It was evil.**

 **She's a teacher, I thought nervously. Its not like shes going to hurt me.**

"She's a teacher alright" Leo muttered "A demonic math teacher"

 **I said, "Ill—Ill try harder, maam. "**

"Would your really?" Thalia teased

 **Thunder shook the building.**

 **"We are not fools, Percy Jackson," Mrs. Dodds said. "It was only a matter of time before we found you out. Confess, and you will suffer less pain. "**

"Confess what?" Jason asked

 **I didnt know what she was talking about.**

"Neither do us" Piper agreed

 **All I could think of was that the teachers mustve found the illegal stash of candy Id been selling out of my dorm room. Or maybe theyd realized I got my essay on Tom Sawyer from the Internet without ever reading the book and now they were going to take away my grade. Or worse, they were going to make me read the book.**

"How is reading worse?" Reyna asked

"I have dyslexia" Percy muttered

 **"Well?" she demanded.**

 **"Maam, I dont. . . "**

 **"Your time is up," she hissed.**

 **Then the weirdest thing happened. Her eyes began to glow like barbecue coals. Her fingers stretched, turning into talons. Her jacket melted into large, leathery wings. She wasnt human. She was a shriveled hag with bat wings and claws and a mouth full of yellow fangs, and she was about to slice me to ribbons.**

"That's the.." Jason said sitting up and looked at Percy, wondering how he managed to escape the kindly ones

 **Then things got even stranger.**

 **Mr. Brunner, who'd been out in front of the museum a minute before, wheeled his chair into the doorway of the gallery, holding a pen in his hand.**

"Is that your sword?" Reyna asked

Percy nodded in response

 **"What ho, Percy!" he shouted, and tossed the pen through the air.**

 **Mrs. Dodds lunged at me.**

 **With a yelp, I dodged and felt talons slash the air next to my ear. I snatched the ballpoint pen out of the air, but when it hit my hand, it wasnt a pen anymore. It was a sword—Mr. Brunners bronze sword, which he always used on tournament day.**

 **Mrs. Dodds spun toward me with a murderous look in her eyes.**

 **My knees were jelly.**

"Like a jelly fish?" Hazel asked "you really make a lot of sea related references"

 **My hands were shaking so bad I almost dropped the sword.**

 **She snarled, "Die, honey!"**

"Probably would have been more menacing if she removed the honey" Frank said

 **And she flew straight at me.**

 **Absolute terror ran through my body. I did the only thing that came naturally: I swung the sword.**

 **The metal blade hit her shoulder and passed clean through her body as if she were made of water. Hisss!**

"Do you always relate things with water or the sea?" Piper asked

"Kind of.. Yeah" Percy said

 **Mrs. Dodds was a sand castle**

"Now there's a beach reference" Rachel said

 **in a power fan. She exploded into yellow powder, vaporized on the spot, leaving nothing but the smell of sulfur and a dying screech and a chill of evil in the air, as if those two glowing red eyes were still watching me.**

 **I was alone.**

 **There was a ballpoint pen in my hand.**

 **Mr. Brunner wasn't there. Nobody was there but me.**

"Nobody huh?" Annabeth said smirking

 **My hands were still trembling. My lunch mustve been contaminated with magic mushrooms or something.**

"Magic Mushrooms?" Calypso asked

 **Had I imagined the whole thing?**

"Nope" everyone muttered

 **I went back outside.**

 **It had started to rain.**

"Now that's one way to get into a gloomy mood" Jessy said

 **Grover was sitting by the fountain, a museum map tented over his head. Nancy Bobofit was still standing there, soaked from her swim in the fountain, grumbling to her ugly friends. When she saw me, she said, "I hope Mrs. Kerr whipped your butt. "**

"Who?" Everyone asked

 **I said, "Who?"**

 **"Our teacher. Duh!"**

"Your teacher?" Reyna asked

 **I blinked. We had no teacher named Mrs. Kerr. I asked Nancy what she was talking about.**

 **She just rolled her eyes and turned away.**

 **I asked Grover where Mrs. Dodds was.**

 **He said, "Who?"**

 **But he paused first, and he wouldnt look at me, so I thought he was messing with me.**

"You are a terrible liar Grover" Leo said

 **"Not funny, man," I told him. "This is serious. "**

 **Thunder boomed overhead.**

 **I saw Mr. Brunner sitting under his red umbrella, reading his book, as if hed never moved.**

 **I went over to him.**

 **He looked up, a little distracted. "Ah, that would be my pen. Please bring your own writing utensil in the future, Mr. Jackson. "**

 **I handed Mr. Brunner his pen. I hadn't even realized I was still holding it.**

 **"Sir," I said, "where's Mrs. Dodds?"**

 **He stared at me blankly. "Who?"**

 **"The other chaperone. Mrs. Dodds. The pre-algebra teacher. "**

 **He frowned and sat forward, looking mildly concerned. "Percy, there is no Mrs. Dodds on this trip. As far as I know, there has never been a Mrs. Dodds at Yancy Academy. Are you feeling all right?"**

"That's the end of the chapter" Annabeth said closing the book

"Foooood!" Grover screamed and ran for the nearest door

"Come on guys" Thalia said "Lets go follow Grover before he eats everything"

When everyone got to the kitchen they were amazed to see that it was filled with stocks and stocks of food of all kinds. There was a large rectangular dinning table with chairs sprawled out enough for everyone. Everyone took their seats and started eating. While they were eating Percy, Annabeth, Piper, and Jason were observing their supposed to be future children.

"I still can't believe they're our kids" Piper whispered to Annabeth "And that I have twins"

"I can't believe it either" Annabeth agreed "Josh looks a lot like Jason" she pointed out at Piper

"and Trina looks like a mix of both you and Percy" Piper said

"Jess looks more like you and Jason mixed too" Annabeth whispered to Piper

"Do you think my son is dating your daughter" Piper asked her blonde friend

"No clue yet" Annabeth answered

"Hey Jason" Piper whispered to her boyfriend "Do you think Josh and Trina are dating?"

"Don't know. Why"

"Well, they're sitting so close to each other, and I sort of just feel it. Look"

"What are you three whispering about?" Percy asked a little bit too loudly which caused everyone to look at Annabeth, Piper, and Jason

Thalia raised an eyebrow at the three "Well? What were you three whispering about?"

"Nothing" Piper answered

"She was wondering if our kids were dating" Jason answered

"Yeah I was kind of wondering about that too" Rachel said

Piper glared at her boyfriend. "What?" he asked "Only way to find out is to ask them"

"Well are you?" Percy asked

Jessy and Nick looked at each other and burst out laughing

"Yeah Josh why don't you and Trina answer that question?" Nick teased

But before the two could answer a bright light engulfed the room, when the light disappeared there was an eleven year old girl standing on top of the dinning table, she was wearing an orange camp half-blood t-shirt and leggings. She looked like Annabeth with her blonde hair and gray eyes.

"Amy?" Trina asked

The little girl looked at Trina then at everyone at the room

"Am I dreaming?" the girl asked

"No. We got sent to the past by the three fates" Jessy answered

"Here let me help you get down from the table" Josh offered

"Wait. So we are in the past?" Amy asked as she was getting down from the table

"Yes"

"The past where in our parents are teenagers?" she asked while looking at Percy and Annabeth

"She's your sister?" Thalia asked Trina

"The one and only. This is Amythyst Jackson"

"Its weird seeing our parents as teenagers" Amythyst said while looking at her parents

"Its weird seeing our future kids too"Percy said

"Toche" Amythyst sait while grabbing the fork from her sister and taking a some of her pasta

"Get your own Amy" Trina said taking her fork back

"Well I don't have a plate nor a chair" Amy whined "Can you sit on Josh's lap so I can have your chair?"

"So you are dating!" Piper exclaimed

"Geez beauty queen you sound just like Drew" Leo muttered

"You didn't tell them?" Amy asked

"Yes we are. And no because we thought being your kids from the future was already too much information to take in, so we were gonna try to hide it" Trina said

"Chair please!" Amy shouted

A chair then magically appeared beside her as well as eating utensils in front of her

"Thank you!" she shouted and started to stack some food in her plate

"You look like a mini Annabeth" Grover said

"Yeah I get that a lot" Amy said while chewing her food

"Wait til she starts acting like a seaweed brain" Trina muttered

The little girl hit her sister with a spoon "OW!"

"You're being a mean big sister again!"

"What was mean about that? I was telling the truth"

"Shut up both of you and just eat. You're gonna give me a headache" Jessy shouted at the two sisters fighting

"Wait" Amythyst said and looked at everyone "What are we doing here anyway?"

Rachel explained to the little girl why they were summoned there by the fates.

"So we are reading a book about dad?" Amy asked

"Yes" Rachel answered

"Does anybody have a pen and paper? I am going to get so much cash from all the blackmail information I'm going to get"

"What is it with my kids and blackmailing me?" Percy asked

"We need more cash" The siblings said at the same time and laughed

"You already have one?" Amy asked Trina

"Yep look" she said and showed her sister the notebook she had

"Percy I think your kids are scary" Grover said

"Tell me about it"

"Besides Percy, Annabeth, Piper, and Jason" Leo started "Do any of us have kids in the future?"

Everyone looked at Leo "What? Aren't you guys curious?" Leo asked them

"You have a five year old girl named Leah" Amythyst told Leo

"I do?" Leo asked

"Yeah. Yours and Calypso's"

"Really?!" Leo exclaimed and hugged a very shocked Calypso "That's so cool!"

"Well obviously Thalia and I can't have kids, so who else has mini versions of themselves in the future?" Rachel asked the future kids

"Uncle Grover has three little satyr babies" Trina said

Jessy smiled at Hazel and Frank "You two already have two son's, and are actually expecting a third baby at our time, though we don't know the gender yet"

After hearing about those information regarding their future, the demigods continued to eat their lunch while chatting with one another.


	3. Chapter 2: Rachel

"Who wants to read next?" Annabeth asked

"I'll do it" Rachel said "I'm sitting next to you anyway, we can do this according to where were seating."

 **2\. THREE OLD LADIES KNIT THE SOCKS OF DEATH**

"You have weird chapter title's Percy" Rachel said

 **I was used to the occasional weird experience, but usually they were over quickly. This twenty-four/seven hallucination was more than I could handle. For the rest of the school year, the entire campus seemed to be playing some kind of trick on me. The students acted as if they were completely and totally convinced that Mrs. Kerr—a perky blond woman whom Id never seen in my life until she got on our bus at the end of the field trip—had been our pre-algebra teacher since Christmas.**

"Bet you thought you were on some kind of reality prank show huh?" Piper asked

"Well if you think about it, we kind of are" Annabeth asked

"What do you mean?" Leo asked

"With the gods always watching us when we do quest and stuff" Thalia answered

"Oh"

"Yeah that kind of makes sense" Hazel said

 **Every so often I would spring a Mrs. Dodds reference on somebody, just to see if I could trip them up, but they would stare at me like I was psycho.**

"You are psycho" Grover said

" **It got so I almost believed them—Mrs. Dodds had never existed.**

 **Almost.**

"Grover didn't fool you enought, did he?" Thalia asked

"Hold on it says it here" Rachel said

 **But Grover couldnt fool me. When I mentioned the name Dodds to him, he would hesitate, then claim she didnt exist. But I knew he was lying.**

"We really need the Stolls to teach you how to lie Grover" Nico said

 **Something was going on. Something had happened at the museum.**

 **I didnt have much time to think about it during the days, but at night, visions of Mrs. Dodds with talons and leathery wings would wake me up in a cold sweat.**

"I hate those dreams" Nick said

"You dream of Mrs. Dodds too?" Percy asked

"No. Dreaming and waking up in cold sweat"

 **The freak weather continued, which didnt help my mood. One night, a thunderstorm blew out the windows in my dorm room. A few days later, the biggest tornado ever spotted in the Hudson Valley touched down only fifty miles from Yancy Academy.**

"Looks like Jupiter is out to get you" Reyna said

 **One of the current events we studied in social studies class was the unusual number of small planes that had gone down in sudden squalls in the Atlantic that year.**

"Why is Neptune mad too?" Reyna asked

"You'll eventually find out" Percy said

 **I started feeling cranky and irritable most of the time.**

"Guess your fathers mood is getting to you too" Rachel said

 **My grades slipped from Ds to Fs.**

"Does that sound familiar to you Jess?" Josh asked his sister

"Shut up"

 **I got into more fights with Nancy Bobofit and her friends. I was sent out into the hallway in almost every class.**

 **Finally, when our English teacher, Mr. Nicoll, asked me for the millionth time why I was too lazy to study for spelling tests, I snapped. I called him an old sot. I wasnt even sure what it meant, but it sounded good.**

"Now do you know what it means?" Leo asked Percy

"I still have no clue" Percy answered

 **The headmaster sent my mom a letter the following week, making it official: I would not be invited back next year to Yancy Academy.**

 **Fine, I told myself. Just fine.**

 **I was homesick.**

 **I wanted to be with my mom in our little apartment on the Upper East Side, even if I had to go to public school and put up with my obnoxious stepfather and his stupid poker parties.**

"I don't get it" Amy said

"Yeah. Grandpa Paul is nothing like that" Trina said

"My future me didn't tell you about my first step father?" Percy asked

"No"

"You'll find out later"

 **And yet. . . there were things Id miss at Yancy. The view of the woods out my dorm window, the Hudson River in the distance, the smell of pine trees. Id miss Grover,**

 **who'd been a good friend,**

"That's sweet of you Perce" Grover said looking at his best friend

 **even if he was a little strange.**

"I take that back" Grover muttered

"Sorry" Percy said while scratching the back of his neck

 **I worried how he'd survive next year without me.**

 **Id miss Latin class, too—Mr. Brunners crazy tournament days and his faith that I could do well.**

 **As exam week got closer, Latin was the only test I studied for.**

"Well at least you studied" Annabeth said

 **I hadnt forgotten what Mr. Brunner had told me about this subject being life-and-death for me. I wasnt sure why, but Id started to believe him.**

 **The evening before my final, I got so frustrated I threw the Cambridge Guide to Greek Mythology across my dorm room. Words had started swimming off the page, circling my head, the letters doing one-eighties as if they were riding skateboards. There was no way I was going to remember the difference between Chiron and Charon,**

"Now you know" Grover said

 **or Polydictes and Polydeuces. And conjugating those Latin verbs? Forget it.**

 **I paced the room, feeling like ants were crawling around inside my shirt.**

"How do you even know that feeling?" Hazel asked

 **I remembered Mr. Brunners serious expression, his thousand-year-old eyes. I will accept only the best from you, Percy Jackson.**

"and the best he got" Amythyst said proudly

 **I took a deep breath. I picked up the mythology book.**

 **Id never asked a teacher for help before. Maybe if I talked to Mr. Brunner, he could give me some pointers. At least I could apologize for the big fat F I was about to score on his exam. I didn't want to leave Yancy Academy with him thinking I hadn't tried.**

 **I walked downstairs to the faculty offices. Most of them were dark and empty, but Mr. Brunners door was ajar, light from his window stretching across the hallway floor.**

 **I was three steps from the door handle when I heard voices inside the office. Mr. Brunner asked a question. A voice that was definitely Grovers said ". . . worried about Percy, sir. "**

 **I froze.**

 **Im not usually an eavesdropper, but I dare you to try not listening if you hear your best friend talking about you to an adult.**

 **I inched closer.**

 **". . . alone this summer," Grover was saying. "I mean, a Kindly One in the school! Now that we know for sure, and they know too—"**

 **"We would only make matters worse by rushing him," Mr. Brunner said. "We need the boy to mature more. "**

"Even now he isn't mature enough" Rachel said

"He's still not very mature in our time either" Amythyst said

"How so?" Annabeth asked

"I can tell you all about it later mommy" Amythyst said

"Still weird" Annabeth muttered under her breath

 **"But he may not have time. The summer solstice deadline— "**

 **"Will have to be resolved without him, Grover. Let him enjoy his ignorance while he still can. "**

"So that's why you said we should just believe the lies that our parents told us" Nick said

 **"Sir, he saw her. . . . "**

 **"His imagination," Mr. Brunner insisted. "The Mist over the students and staff will be enough to convince him of that. "**

"I wasn't that convinced" Percy muttered

 **"Sir, I . . . I cant fail in my duties again. " Grovers voice was choked with emotion. "You know what that would mean. "**

 **"You haven't failed, Grover," Mr. Brunner said kindly. "I should have seen her for what she was. Now lets just worry about keeping Percy alive until next fall—"**

"At at time everyone was worried about keeping Percy alive" Annabeth said

 **The mythology book dropped out of my hand and hit the floor with a thud.**

 **Mr. Brunner went silent.**

 **My heart hammering, I picked up the book and backed down the hall.**

 **A shadow slid across the lighted glass of Brunners office door, the shadow of something much taller than my wheelchair-bound teacher, holding something that looked suspiciously like an archers bow.**

 **I opened the nearest door and slipped inside.**

 **A few seconds later I heard a slow clop-clop-clop, like muffled wood blocks, then a sound like an animal snuffling right outside my door. A large, dark shape paused in front of the glass, then moved on.**

 **A bead of sweat trickled down my neck.**

 **Somewhere in the hallway, Mr. Brunner spoke. "Nothing," he murmured. "My nerves haven't been right since the winter solstice. "**

"What happened at the winter solstice?" Reyna asked

 **"Mine neither," Grover said. "But I could have sworn . . . "**

 **"Go back to the dorm," Mr. Brunner told him. "You've got a long day of exams tomorrow."**

 **"Don't remind me. "**

 **The lights went out in Mr. Brunners office.**

 **I waited in the dark for what seemed like forever.**

"With ADHD everything seems like forever" Percy muttered

 **Finally, I slipped out into the hallway and made my way back up to the dorm.**

 **Grover was lying on his bed, studying his Latin exam notes like he'd been there all night.**

"Were you actually studying or pretending to study?" Annabeth asked

"I forgot" Grover said "Maybe a bit of both?"

 **"Hey," he said, bleary-eyed. "You going to be ready for this test?"**

 **I didn't answer.**

 **"You look awful. " He frowned. "Is everything okay?"**

 **"Just. . . tired. "**

 **I turned so he couldn't read my expression, and started getting ready for bed.**

"But I can read your emotion" Grover said

"You can?" Hazel asked

"Yep"

 **I didn't understand what I'd heard downstairs. I wanted to believe I'd imagined the whole thing.**

"But sadly I didn't"

 **But one thing was clear: Grover and Mr. Brunner were talking about me behind my back. They thought I was in some kind of danger.**

"Which you were" Rachel said

 **The next afternoon, as I was leaving the three-hour Latin exam, my eyes swimming with all the Greek and Roman names I'd misspelled, Mr. Brunner called me back inside.**

 **For a moment, I was worried he'd found out about my eavesdropping the night before, but that didn't seem to be the problem.**

 **"Percy," he said. "Don't be discouraged about leaving Yancy. Its . . . its for the best. "**

"Uh oh" Trina said "You didn't take that very well did you?"

"Not at all"

 **His tone was kind, but the words still embarrassed me. Even though he was speaking quietly, the other kids finishing the test could hear. Nancy Bobofit smirked at me and made sarcastic little kissing motions with her lips.**

"Did she by any chance had a crush on you?" Jessy asked

Percy looked at her confused

"She bullies you a lot, some people actually do that to get the attention of someone they have a crush on"

"I'm gonna forget you ever said that" Percy said

 **I mumbled, "Okay, sir. "**

 **"I mean . . . " Mr. Brunner wheeled his chair back and forth, like he wasn't sure what to say. "This isn't the right place for you. It was only a matter of time. "**

 **My eyes stung.**

 **Here was my favorite teacher, in front of the class, telling me I couldn't handle it. After saying he believed in me all year, now he was telling me I was destined to get kicked out.**

"Ouch" Nick said

 **"Right," I said, trembling.**

 **"No, no," Mr. Brunner said. "Oh, confound it all. What I'm trying to say . . . you're not normal, Percy. Thats nothing to be—"**

 **"Thanks," I blurted. "Thanks a lot, sir, for reminding me. "**

 **"Percy—"**

 **But I was already gone.**

 **On the last day of the term, I shoved my clothes into my suitcase.**

 **The other guys were joking around, talking about their vacation plans. One of them was going on a hiking trip to Switzerland. Another was cruising the Caribbean for a month. They were juvenile delinquents, like me, but they were rich juvenile delinquents. Their daddies were executives, or ambassadors, or celebrities. I was a nobody, from a family of nobodies.**

"I don't think Poseidon would like being called a Nobody" Annabeth said

"But then again Nobody was his son" Percy said to Annabeth and they both laughed

"Do you know what their talking about?" Rachel asked Trina

"Not a clue" The girl answered

 **They asked me what Id be doing this summer and I told them I was going back to the city.**

 **What I didn't tell them was that I'd have to get a summer job walking dogs or selling magazine subscriptions, and spend my free time worrying about where I'd go to school in the fall.**

"You're a great dad" Amythyst said suddenly

"Uh I am?" Percy asked

"Yeah. You never let Amythyst and I worry about things like that" Trina answered "You always make sure we have everything we need"

"and want" Amythyst added "And we're lucky to have you as our daddy"

"Thanks, I guess" Percy muttered not really knowing what to say

 **"Oh," one of the guys said. "That's cool. "**

 **They went back to their conversation as if I'd never existed.**

"That's not nice" Calypso said

 **The only person I dreaded saying good-bye to was Grover, but as it turned out, I didn't have to. He'd booked a ticket to Manhattan on the same Greyhound as I had, so there we were, together again, heading into the city.**

"Why does it sound like you and Grover are riding off into the sunset?" Rachel laughed

 **During the whole bus ride, Grover kept glancing nervously down the aisle, watching the other passengers. It occurred to me that he'd always acted nervous and fidgety when we left Yancy, as if he expected something bad to happen. Before, Id always assumed he was worried about getting teased. But there was nobody to tease him on the Greyhound.**

 **Finally I couldn't stand it anymore.**

 **I said, "Looking for Kindly Ones?"**

"That almost gave you a heart attack didn't it?" Annabeth asked

"You bet" Grover answered

 **Grover nearly jumped out of his seat. "Wha—what do you mean?"**

 **I confessed about eavesdropping on him and Mr. Brunner the night before the exam.**

 **Grovers eye twitched. "How much did you hear?"**

 **"Oh . . . not much. Whats the summer solstice dead-line?"**

 **He winced. "Look, Percy . . . I was just worried for you, see? I mean, hallucinating about demon math teachers . . . "**

"You're a really bad liar" Frank said

 **"Grover—"**

 **"And I was telling Mr. Brunner that maybe you were overstressed or something, because there was no such person as Mrs. Dodds, and . . . "**

 **"Grover, you're a really, really bad liar. "**

"Oh look at that Frank, you and Percy think alike" Leo said

 **His ears turned pink.**

 **From his shirt pocket, he fished out a grubby business card. "Just take this, okay? In case you need me this summer.**

 **The card was in fancy script, which was murder on my dyslexic eyes, but I finally made out something like:**

"Why is it in a fancy script?" Thalia asked "You know must demigods have dyslexia"

 **Grover Underwood**

 **Keeper**

 **Half-Blood Hill**

 **Long Island, New York**

 **(800) 009-0009**

 **"Whats Half—"**

 **"Don't say it aloud!" he yelped. "That's my, um . . . summer address. "**

 **My heart sank. Grover had a summer home. Id never considered that his family might be as rich as the others at Yancy.**

 **"Okay," I said glumly. "So, like, if I want to come visit your mansion. "**

 **He nodded. "Or . . . or if you need me. "**

 **"Why would I need you?"**

"That's rude" Calypso pointed out

 **It came out harsher than I meant it to.**

 **Grover blushed right down to his Adams apple. "Look, Percy, the truth is, I—I kind of have to protect you. "**

 **I stared at him.**

 **All year long, I'd gotten in fights, keeping bullies away from him. I'd lost sleep worrying that he'd get beaten up next year without me. And here he was acting like he was the one who defended me.**

"You're a really good friend Percy" Grover said

"Thanks"

 **"Grover," I said, "what exactly are you protecting me from?"**

"Oh nothing much, just a few monsters who wants to eat you" Nico said

 **There was a huge grinding noise under our feet. Black smoke poured from the dashboard and the whole bus filled with a smell like rotten eggs. The driver cursed and limped the Greyhound over to the side of the highway.**

 **After a few minutes clanking around in the engine compartment, the driver announced that wed all have to get off. Grover and I filed outside with everybody else.**

 **We were on a stretch of country road—no place you'd notice if you didn't break down there. On our side of the highway was nothing but maple trees and litter from passing cars. On the other side, across four lanes of asphalt shimmering with afternoon heat, was an old-fashioned fruit stand.**

 **The stuff on sale looked really good: heaping boxes of blood red cherries and apples, walnuts and apricots, jugs of cider in a claw-foot tub full of ice. There were no customers, just three old ladies sitting in rocking chairs in the shade of a maple tree, knitting the biggest pair of socks Id ever seen.**

"Is that..?" Annabeth asked suddenly alarmed

 **I mean these socks were the size of sweaters, but they were clearly socks. The lady on the right knitted one of them. The lady on the left knitted the other. The lady in the middle held an enormous basket of electric-blue yarn.**

"Oh no" Trina muttered

"Those socks seem so big, they won't fit you" Amythyst said

"Amy" Her sister scolded

"What?" Amythyst asked "It's true"

 **All three women looked ancient, with pale faces wrinkled like fruit leather, silver hair tied back in white bandannas, bony arms sticking out of bleached cotton dresses.**

 **The weirdest thing was, they seemed to be looking right at me.**

"How are you still alive?" Calypso asked as she recognized who those three ladies were

 **I looked over at Grover to say something about this and saw that the blood had drained from his face. His nose was twitching.**

 **"Grover?" I said. "Hey, man—"**

 **"Tell me they're not looking at you. They are, aren't they?"**

 **"Yeah. Weird, huh? You think those socks would fit me?"**

"See even dad thinks that!" Amythyst explains

 **"Not funny, Percy. Not funny at all. "**

"I think it's funny" Amythyst said

 **The old lady in the middle took out a huge pair of scissors—gold and silver, long-bladed, like shears. I heard Grover catch his breath.**

 **"Were getting on the bus," he told me. "Come on. "**

 **"What?" I said. "Its a thousand degrees in there. "**

 **"Come on!" He pried open the door and climbed inside, but I stayed back.**

 **Across the road, the old ladies were still watching me. The middle one cut the yarn, and I swear I could hear that snip across four lanes of traffic. Her two friends balled up the electric-blue socks, leaving me wondering who they could possibly be for—Sasquatch or Godzilla.**

"Oh" Amythyst said "I know who they are now"

 **At the rear of the bus, the driver wrenched a big chunk of smoking metal out of the engine compartment. The bus shuddered, and the engine roared back to life.**

"It's like they were the ones responsible for the bus breaking down, just so you can see them" Rachel said

 **The passengers cheered.**

 **"Darn right!" yelled the driver. He slapped the bus with his hat. "Everybody back on board!"**

 **Once we got going, I started feeling feverish, as if Id caught the flu.**

 **Grover didn't look much better. He was shivering and his teeth were chattering.**

 **"Grover?"**

 **"Yeah?"**

 **"What are you not telling me?"**

"Everything" Piper said

 **He dabbed his forehead with his shirt sleeve. "Percy, what did you see back at the fruit stand?"**

 **"You mean the old ladies? What is it about them, man? They're not like . . . Mrs. Dodds, are they?"**

"Worse" Jason said

 **His expression was hard to read, but I got the feeling that the fruit-stand ladies were something much, much worse than Mrs. Dodds. He said, "Just tell me what you saw. "**

 **"The middle one took out her scissors, and she cut the yarn. "**

 **He closed his eyes and made a gesture with his fingers that mightve been crossing himself, but it wasn't. It was something else, something almost—older.**

 **He said, "You saw her snip the cord. "**

 **"Yeah. So?" But even as I said it, I knew it was a big deal.**

 **"This is not happening," Grover mumbled. He started chewing at his thumb. "I don't want this to be like the last time. "**

"What happened last time?" Hazel asked

 **"What last time?"**

 **"Always sixth grade. They never get past sixth. "**

"What do you mean?" Calypso asked

 **"Grover," I said, because he was really starting to scare me. "What are you talking about?"**

 **"Let me walk you home from the bus station. Promise me. "**

"That's gonna sound strange to him for sure" Amythyst said

 **This seemed like a strange request to me, but I promised he could.**

"I was right!" the eleven year old yelled

 **"Is this like a superstition or something?" I asked.**

 **No answer.**

 **"Grover—that snipping of the yarn. Does that mean somebody is going to die?"**

"Great Percy" Thalia mumbled "You're making Grover more nervous"

 **He looked at me mournfully, like he was already picking the kind of flowers I'd like best on my coffin.**

"What kind of flowers would you like?" Amythyst asked

Everyone looked at her weirdly

"What? I'm curious"

"I don't really know how to answer that" Percy said

"Well that was the end of the chapter" Rachel said "Your turn Thalia"


	4. Chapter 3: Thalia

**3\. GROVER UNEXPECTEDLY LOSES HIS PANTS**

"Wait… what?" Thalia asked laughing "Why'd you lose your pants goat boy?"

"Ohh Ohh I know!" Leo shouted

"I have a bad feeling about this" Piper muttered

"The bus driver's pants got so dirty while he was fixing the bus so he stole Grover's pants instead!"

"Why are you all looking at me like that?" Leo asked "my explanation makes sense!"

"No it does not" Grover muttered

"You should probably leave him while you still can" Piper told Calypso

 **Confession time: I ditched Grover as soon as we got to the bus terminal.**

"That was very mean daddy" Amythyst said

"Can you call me Percy? It's still really weird" Percy said

"No"

 **I know, I know. It was rude. But Grover was freaking me out, looking at me like I was a dead man, muttering "Why does this always happen?" and "Why does it always have to he sixth grade?"**

"What happened before?" Hazel asked

"I think it will be mentioned later" Grover said

 **Whenever he got upset, Grover's bladder acted up, so I wasn't surprised when, as soon as we got off the bus, he made me promise to wait for him,then made a beeline for the restroom.**

"Now I have a better explanation" Leo exclaimed

"We don't want to hear it" Frank muttered

"Yes you do panda man" Leo said "You see, Grover was so upset and nervous that when he went to the restroom, he forgot to put his pants back on"

"Please read Thalia" Grover said

 **Instead of waiting, I got my suitcase, slipped outside, and caught the first taxi uptown.**

"That's just like him to promise something and not do it" Amythyst said while crossing her arms over her chest

"You're still mad about that?" Trina asked laughing

"Why? What did the future me do?" Percy asked

"You promised her a baby sister for her 6th birthday" Trina answered laughing

"And?" Annabeth asked

"You got her a puppy instead" Trina answered "at that time she thought babies could be bought from a 'baby shop' so she was really mad"

"I don't get why she's still mad about that" Jessy said "Amy your eleven years old now, you do know that babies can't be bought from a store right?"

"But he promised!"

"You should be grateful your the youngest, I would literally do anything just to not have another sibling" Jessy said

"Why?" Piper asked curiously

"Daddy's little girl doesn't want to get dethroned as daddy's little princess" Josh said rolling his eyes

"Exactly!" Jessy exclaimed "please don't have anymore children" she told Piper and Jason

"Please continue reading Thalia before it gets any weirder" Piper said

 **"East One-hundred-and-fourth and First," I told the driver.**

 **A word about my mother, before you meet her.**

"Yey! Grandma!" Amy exclaimed happily

 **Her name is Sally Jackson and shes the best person in the world,**

"Absolutely!" Trina said and all the demigods that new Sally nodded

 **which just proves my theory that the best people have the rottenest luck. Her own parents died in a plane crash when she was five, and she was raised by an uncle who didn't care much about her. She wanted to be a novelist, so she spent high school working to save enough money for a college with a good creative-writing program. Then her uncle got cancer, and she had to quit school her senior year to take care of him. After he died, she was left with no money, no family, and no diploma.**

"I didn't know that" Trina said

"Geez Percy, the future you is not telling your kids a lot of things" Leo said

 **The only good break she ever got was meeting my dad.**

"Awwww" Hazel cooed

"That's so sweet" Jessy squealed

"Hey beauty queen" Leo whispered to Piper "your daughter is nothing like you"

"I know right" Piper said "she's too much like my mom"

 **I don't have any memories of him, just this sort of warm glow, maybe the barest trace of his smile. My mom doesn't like to talk about him because it makes her sad. She has no pictures.**

 **See, they weren't married. She told me he was rich and important, and their relationship was a secret. Then one day, he set sail across the Atlantic on some important journey, and he never came back.**

 **Lost at sea, my mom told me. Not dead. Lost at sea.**

"My mom told me almost the same thing" Nick said "Sort of"

"What did your mom tell you about Apollo?" Jessy asked Nick

"That he was a busy musician travelling the world, seeing everything under the sun" he answered

"That does sound like dad alright" someone said from behind them

They all turned around towards the door leading to the kitchen to see Will Solace leaning on the door frame.

"Will?!"

"Hi guys!"

"How long have you been there?" Jason asked

"I appeared in the kitchen a few minutes ago, went through this door right here and came just in time to hear that about dad" Will explained "So what are we doing here, and who are these guys?" he asked heading towards Nico and sitting beside him

After Nico was done explaining everything to Will, and introduced the kids from the future, Thalia continued to read.

 **She worked odd jobs, took night classes to get her high school diploma, and raised me on her own. She never complained or got mad. Not even once. But I knew I wasn't an easy kid.**

"Neither are we" Trina said

"We give mommy lots of headaches" Amy said happily

"Oh No" Annabeth said

 **Finally, she married Gabe Ugliano, who was nice the first thirty seconds we knew him, then showed his true colors as a world-class jerk. When I was young, I nicknamed him Smelly Gabe. I'm sorry, but its the truth. The guy reeked like moldy garlic pizza wrapped in gym shorts.**

"Ew" Jessy said

 **Between the two of us, we made my moms life pretty hard. The way Smelly Gabe treated her, the way he and I got along . . . well, when I came home is a good example.**

 **I walked into our little apartment, hoping my mom would be home from work. Instead, Smelly Gabe was in the living room, playing poker with his buddies. The television blared ESPN. Chips and beer cans were strewn all over the carpet.**

 **Hardly looking up, he said around his cigar, "So, you're home. "**

 **"Wheres my mom?"**

 **"Working," he said. "You got any cash?"**

"That's it?" Amythyst exclaimed "No welcome home? How's your life been the past months? Nothing?"

"That's Gabe for you" Percy said

 **That was it. No Welcome back. Good to see you. How has your life been the last six months?**

"You were right" Thalia told Trina "She is a lot like kelp head over here"

"Told ya"

 **Gabe had put on weight. He looked like a tuskless walrus in thrift-store clothes. He had about three hairs on his head, all combed over his bald scalp, as if that made him handsome or something.**

"Why does he remind me of something I've seen in a museum?" Rachel asked and Percy tried his best to not burst into laughter.

 **He managed the Electronics Mega-Mart in Queens, but he stayed home most of the time. I don't know why he hadn't been fired long before. He just kept on collecting paychecks, spending the money on cigars that made me nauseous, and on beer, of course. Always beer. Whenever I was home, he expected me to provide his gambling funds. He called that our "guy secret. " Meaning, if I told my mom, he would punch my lights out.**

"I would like to punch his lights out" Annabeth grumbled

 **"I don't have any cash," I told him.**

 **He raised a greasy eyebrow.**

"Gross"

 **Gabe could sniff out money like a bloodhound, which was surprising, since his own smell should've covered up everything else.**

 **"You took a taxi from the bus station," he said. Probably paid with a twenty. Got six, seven bucks in change. Somebody expects to live under this roof, he ought to carry his own weight. Am I right, Eddie?"**

"He's 12 years old" Hazel said "How would you expect him to carry his own weight?"

 **Eddie, the super of the apartment building, looked at me with a twinge of sympathy. "Come on, Gabe," he said. "The kid just got here. "**

"At least someone there has sympathy" Annabeth said

 **"Am I right?" Gabe repeated.**

 **Eddie scowled into his bowl of pretzels. The other two guys passed gas in harmony.**

"I think I'm gonna throw up, someone get me bucket" Jessy said

 **"Fine," I said. I dug a wad of dollars out of my pocket and threw the money on the table. "I hope you lose. "**

 **"Your report card came, brain boy!" he shouted after me. "I wouldn't act so snooty!"**

"Now that's a weird nickname for Percy" Nico said

"I know right" Thalia agreed "I like kelp head better"

"Nah Aqua Dude suits him more" Nico argued

"Does not!"

"Does too!"

"He's a kelp head!"

"He's aqua dude"

"He's my seaweed brain! Now both of you shut up!" Annabeth screamed

 **I slammed the door to my room, which really wasn't my room. During school months, it was Gabe's "study. " He didn't study anything in there except old car magazines, but he loved shoving my stuff in the closet, leaving his muddy boots on my windowsill, and doing his best to make the place smell like his nasty cologne and cigars and stale beer.**

"Ugh I hate the smell of cigar" Jessy said

 **I dropped my suitcase on the bed. Home sweet home.**

"You're really sarcastic aren't you?" Frank asked

"So I've been told" Percy answered

 **Gabe's smell was almost worse than the nightmares about Mrs. Dodds, or the sound of that old fruit lady's shears snipping the yarn.**

 **But as soon as I thought that, my legs felt weak. I remembered Grover's look of panic—how he'd made me promise I wouldn't go home without him. A sudden chill rolled through me. I felt like someone—something—was looking for me right now, maybe pounding its way up the stairs, growing long, horrible talons.**

"That was probably me looking for you" Grover said "though I don't have talons"

 **Then I heard my moms voice. "Percy?"**

 **She opened the bedroom door, and my fears melted.**

"Mama's boy" Thalia muttered

"Kind of like my brother" Jessy teased while looking at her twin

 **My mother can make me feel good just by walking into the room. Her eyes sparkle and change color in the light. Her smile is as warm as a quilt. She's got a few gray streaks mixed in with her long brown hair, but I never think of her as old. When she looks at me, its like she's seeing all the good things about me, none of the bad. I've never heard her raise her voice or say an unkind word to anyone, not even me or Gabe.**

 **"Oh, Percy. " She hugged me tight. "I cant believe it. You've grown since Christmas!"**

 **Her red-white-and-blue Sweet on America uniform smelled like the best things in the world: chocolate, licorice, and all the other stuff she sold at the candy shop in Grand Central. Shed brought me a huge bag of "free samples," the way she always did when I came home.**

"Luckyyyyy" Leo said his mouth watering "I want free samples too"

 **We sat together on the edge of the bed. While I attacked the blueberry sour strings, she ran her hand through my hair and demanded to know everything I hadn't put in my letters. She didn't mention anything about my getting expelled. She didn't seem to care about that. But was I okay? Was her little boy doing all right?**

"That sound's like a conversation that mom and Josh usually have" Jessy said

"Oh like you don't have the same conversation with dad" he retorted back

"Percy's right this is weird" Piper said "This is weird for you too, right Jason?"

"Your own kids weird you out?" Jessy asked acting sad

"Now that we're about the same age, yeah it kind of does" Jason answered

 **I told her she was smothering me, and to lay off and all that, but secretly, I was really, really glad to see her.**

 **From the other room, Gabe yelled, "Hey, Sally—how about some bean dip, huh?"**

 **I gritted my teeth.**

And so did almost everyone in the room

 **My mom is the nicest lady in the world. She should've been married to a millionaire, not to some jerk like Gabe.**

"She did end up marrying a much nicer man" Trina said "Grandpa Paul is amazing"

"and he always gives me chocolates" Amythyst said happily

 **For her sake, I tried to sound upbeat about my last days at Yancy Academy. I told her I wasn't too down about the expulsion. I'd lasted almost the whole year this time. I'd made some new friends. I'd done pretty well in Latin. And honestly, the fights hadn't been as bad as the headmaster said.**

"Headmasters always make everything look bad" Leo muttered

 **I liked Yancy Academy. I really did. I put such a good spin on the year, I almost convinced myself. I started choking up, thinking about Grover and Mr. Brunner. Even Nancy Bobofit suddenly didn't seem so bad.**

 **Until that trip to the museum . . .**

 **"What?" my mom asked. Her eyes tugged at my conscience, trying to pull out the secrets. "Did something scare you?"**

"Aw did something scare little Percy?" Leo teased

"Shut up, Valdez"

 **"No, Mom. "**

 **I felt bad lying. I wanted to tell her about Mrs. Dodds and the three old ladies with the yarn, but I thought it would sound stupid.**

 **She pursed her lips. She knew I was holding back, but she didn't push me.**

"She is so nice" Thalia said "if I was your mom, I'd threaten you until you tell me everything"

"Well its a good thing you're a hunter" Percy said "I don't think you'd do well with raising kids"

"Hey!" Thalia screamed hitting Percy's shoulder "For your information I did a pretty good job at taking care of Jason before Hera took him away"

"She was also good at baby sitting us when we were little" Josh added "made sure there weren't any staplers around"

"Or bricks" Jessy laughed along with the others who remembered that Jason tried to eat a stapler when he was two.

 **"I have a surprise for you," she said. "Were going to the beach. "**

"I wanna go to the beach!" Amythyst whined

 **My eyes widened. "Montauk?"**

 **"Three nights—same cabin. "**

"I love that place" Amy said

"Do you I take you guys to montauk often?" Percy asked

"Yes you do" Amy answered

 **"When?"**

 **She smiled. "As soon as I get changed. "**

 **I couldn't believe it. My mom and I hadn't been to Montauk the last two summers, because Gabe said there wasn't enough money.**

"Cause he spent it all on cigars" Jessy muttered annoyed

 **Gabe appeared in the doorway and growled, "Bean dip, Sally? Didn't you hear me?"**

 **I wanted to punch him, but I met my moms eyes and I understood she was offering me a deal: be nice to Gabe for a little while. Just until she was ready to leave for Montauk. Then we would get out of here.**

 **"I was on my way, honey," she told Gabe. "We were just talking about the trip. "**

 **Gabes eyes got small. "The trip? You mean you were serious about that?"**

 **"I knew it," I muttered. "He wont let us go. "**

 **"Of course he will," my mom said evenly. "Your stepfather is just worried about money. Thats all. Besides," she added, "Gabriel wont have to settle for bean dip. Ill make him enough seven-layer dip for the whole weekend. Guacamole. Sour cream. The works. "**

"Oh bribery" Leo said "works every time"

 **Gabe softened a bit. "So this money for your trip . . . it comes out of your clothes budget, right?"**

"WHAT?!" Jessy screamed "How dare he?!"

"Calm down sis" Josh said

"She's really not like Piper, is she?" Hazel asked

"Not at all" Josh answered "

 **"Yes, honey," my mother said.**

 **"And you wont take my car anywhere but there and back. "**

 **"Well be very careful. "**

 **Gabe scratched his double chin. "Maybe if you hurry with that seven-layer dip . . . And maybe if the kid apologizes for interrupting my poker game. "**

 **Maybe if I kick you in your soft spot, I thought. And make you sing soprano for a week.**

"I like the way you think Jackson" Thalia said

"Which Jackson?" Amy asked and everyone looked at her

"What? There are four Jackson's in the room! You gotta be more specific"

"Well technically I'm still a Chase" Annabeth said

"Not for looooong" Amy sing songed

 **But my moms eyes warned me not to make him mad.**

 **Why did she put up with this guy? I wanted to scream. Why did she care what he thought?**

"I'm pretty sure we are all wondering the same thing" Reyna said

 **"I'm sorry," I muttered. "I'm really sorry I interrupted your incredibly important poker game. Please go back to it right now. "**

"So sarcastic" Piper said

 **Gabe's eyes narrowed. His tiny brain was probably trying to detect sarcasm in my statement.**

 **"Yeah, whatever," he decided.**

 **He went back to his game.**

 **"Thank you, Percy," my mom said. "Once we get to Montauk, well talk more about. . . whatever you've forgotten to tell me, okay?"**

 **For a moment, I thought I saw anxiety in her eyes—the same fear Id seen in Grover during the bus ride—as if my mom too felt an odd chill in the air.**

"She probably did" Annabeth said

 **But then her smile returned, and I figured I must have been mistaken. She ruffled my hair and went to make Gabe his seven-layer dip.**

 **An hour later we were ready to leave.**

 **Gabe took a break from his poker game long enough to watch me lug my moms bags to the car. He kept griping and groaning about losing her cooking—and more important, his 78 Camaro—for the whole weekend.**

 **"Not a scratch on this car, brain boy," he warned me as I loaded the last bag. "Not one little scratch. "**

"Like he'd be the one driving" Annabeth grumbled

 **Like I'd be the one driving.**

"You think a like" Will stated "You really are soul mates"

 **I was twelve. But that didn't matter to Gabe. If a seagull so much as pooped on his paint job, he'd find a way to blame me.**

"Doesn't everyone find a way to blame you" Rachel said laughing

"I always blame him" Amythyst said smiling

"Do I want to know?" Percy asked

"You probably don't" Trina answered

 **Watching him lumber back toward the apartment building, I got so mad I did something I cant explain. As Gabe reached the doorway, I made the hand gesture I'd seen Grover make on the bus, a sort of warding-off-evil gesture, a clawed hand over my heart, then a shoving movement toward Gabe. The screen door slammed shut so hard it whacked him in the butt and sent him flying up the staircase as if he'd been shot from a cannon.**

"Impressive" Reyna stated

 **Maybe it was just the wind, or some freak accident with the hinges, but I didn't stay long enough to find out.**

 **I got in the Camaro and told my mom to step on it.**

 **Our rental cabin was on the south shore, way out at the tip of Long Island. It was a little pastel box with faded curtains, half sunken into the dunes. There was always sand in the sheets and spiders in the cabinets,**

"Don't you dare take me there. Ever" Annabeth told Percy

"Noted"

 **and most of the time the sea was too cold to swim in.**

 **I loved the place.**

 **We'd been going there since I was a baby. My mom had been going even longer. She never exactly said, but I knew why the beach was special to her. It was the place where shed met my dad.**

 **As we got closer to Montauk, she seemed to grow younger, years of worry and work disappearing from her face. Her eyes turned the color of the sea.**

 **We got there at sunset, opened all the cabins windows, and went through our usual cleaning routine. We walked on the beach, fed blue corn chips to the seagulls, and munched on blue jelly beans, blue saltwater taffy, and all the other free samples my mom had brought from work.**

 **I guess I should explain the blue food.**

"Yes please explain" Grover said

"Yeah, Even I don't know the story behind that" Annabeth said

 **See, Gabe had once told my mom there was no such thing. They had this fight, which seemed like a really small thing at the time. But ever since, my mom went out of her way to eat blue. She baked blue birthday cakes. She mixed blueberry smoothies. She bought blue-corn tortilla chips and brought home blue candy from the shop. This—along with keeping her maiden name, Jackson, rather than calling herself Mrs. Ugliano—was proof that she wasn't totally suckered by Gabe. She did have a rebellious streak, like me.**

"I think I want to do that" Trina answered

"Do what?" Percy asked "Eat blue food? Doesn't my future self feed you blue food?"

"Yes, a lot of blue food actually. I meant keeping my maiden name in the future"

Josh looked at her funny "you don't want my last name?"

"Is that a proposal, Grace?" Trina asked

"Only if you'll say Yes" he said and winked

"You guys are so cheesy" Amythyst said rolling her eyes "shut up"

"I do agree with her though, keeping your maiden name sounds cool" Piper said and Annabeth and Hazel nodded

"Did I get to keep my maiden name?" Piper asked her children from the future

"Nope" Jessy answered

 **When it got dark, we made a fire. We roasted hot dogs and marshmallows. Mom told me stories about when she was a kid, back before her parents died in the plane crash. She told me about the books she wanted to write someday, when she had enough money to quit the candy shop.**

 **Eventually, I got up the nerve to ask about what was always on my mind whenever we came to Montauk—my father. Moms eyes went all misty. I figured she would tell me the same things she always did, but I never got tired of hearing them.**

 **"He was kind, Percy," she said. "Tall, handsome, and powerful. But gentle, too. You have his black hair, you know, and his green eyes. "**

 **Mom fished a blue jelly bean out of her candy bag. "I wish he could see you, Percy. He would be so proud. "**

"I'm pretty sure he was watching you" Hazel said "I mean you are at the beach and everything"

 **I wondered how she could say that. What was so great about me? A dyslexic, hyperactive boy with a D+ report card, kicked out of school for the sixth time in six years.**

"I know how you feel" Piper said and Leo nodded

 **"How old was I?" I asked. "I mean . . . when he left?"**

 **She watched the flames. "He was only with me for one summer, Percy. Right here at this beach. This cabin. "**

 **"But. . . he knew me as a baby. "**

 **"No, honey. He knew I was expecting a baby, but he never saw you. He had to leave before you were born. "**

 **I tried to square that with the fact that I seemed to remember . . . something about my father. A warm glow. A smile.**

"He visited you?" Reyna asked

"I think so" Percy answered

 **I had always assumed he knew me as a baby. My mom had never said it outright, but still, I'd felt it must be true. Now, to be told that he'd never even seen me . . .**

 **I felt angry at my father. Maybe it was stupid, but I resented him for going on that ocean voyage, for not having the guts to marry my mom. He'd left us, and now we were stuck with Smelly Gabe.**

 **"Are you going to send me away again?" I asked her. "To another boarding school?"**

 **She pulled a marshmallow from the fire.**

 **"I don't know, honey. " Her voice was heavy. "I think . . . I think well have to do something."**

 **"Because you don't want me around?"**

"PERCY!" Annabeth scolded him

"I regretted it after" he explained

 **I regretted the words as soon as they were out.**

 **My moms eyes welled with tears. She took my hand, squeezed it tight. "Oh, Percy, no. I—I have to, honey. For your own good. I have to send you away. "**

 **Her words reminded me of what Mr. Brunner had said—that it was best for me to leave Yancy.**

 **"Because I'm not normal," I said.**

"None of us are" Frank said

 **"You say that as if its a bad thing, Percy. But you don't realize how important you are.**

"You're not that important" Thalia teased

 **I thought Yancy Academy would be far enough away. I thought you'd finally be safe. "**

 **"Safe from what?"**

 **She met my eyes, and a flood of memories came back to me—all the weird, scary things that had ever happened to me, some of which Id tried to forget.**

 **During third grade, a man in a black trench coat had stalked me on the playground. When the teachers threatened to call the police, he went away growling, but no one believed me when I told them that under his broad-brimmed hat, the man only had one eye, right in the middle of his head.**

"A cyclopes?" Reyna asked "Maybe Neptune sent him to watch over you"

"Maybe"

 **Before that—a really early memory. I was in preschool, and a teacher accidentally put me down for a nap in a cot that a snake had slithered into. My mom screamed when she came to pick me up and found me playing with a limp, scaly rope I'd somehow managed to strangle to death with my meaty toddler hands.**

"That is so cool!" Nick said

"Kind of like Hercules" Rachel said

 **In every single school, something creepy had happened, something unsafe, and I was forced to move.**

 **I knew I should tell my mom about the old ladies at the fruit stand, and Mrs. Dodds at the art museum, about my weird hallucination that I had sliced my math teacher into dust with a sword. But I couldn't make myself tell her. I had a strange feeling the news would end our trip to Montauk, and I didn't want that.**

 **"I've tried to keep you as close to me as I could," my mom said. "They told me that was a mistake. But there's only one other option, Percy—the place your father wanted to send you. And I just. . . I just cant stand to do it. "**

 **"My father wanted me to go to a special school?"**

 **"Not a school," she said softly. "A summer camp. "**

"The best place in the world" Will exclaimed

 **My head was spinning. Why would my dad—who hadn't even stayed around long enough to see me born— talk to my mom about a summer camp? And if it was so important, why hadn't she ever mentioned it before?**

 **"I'm sorry, Percy," she said, seeing the look in my eyes. "But I cant talk about it. I—I couldn't send you to that place. It might mean saying good-bye to you for good. "**

 **"For good? But if its only a summer camp . . . "**

 **She turned toward the fire, and I knew from her expression that if I asked her any more questions she would start to cry.**

 **That night I had a vivid dream.**

 **It was storming on the beach, and two beautiful animals, a white horse and a golden eagle, were trying to kill each other at the edge of the surf. The eagle swooped down and slashed the horses muzzle with its huge talons. The horse reared up and kicked at the eagles wings. As they fought, the ground rumbled, and a monstrous voice chuckled somewhere beneath the earth, goading the animals to fight harder.**

 **I ran toward them, knowing I had to stop them from killing each other, but I was running in slow motion. I knew I would be too late. I saw the eagle dive down, its beak aimed at the horses wide eyes, and I screamed, No!**

 **I woke with a start.**

 **Outside, it really was storming, the kind of storm that cracks trees and blows down houses. There was no horse or eagle on the beach, just lightning making false daylight, and twenty-foot waves pounding the dunes like artillery.**

 **With the next thunderclap, my mom woke. She sat up, eyes wide, and said, "Hurricane. "**

 **I knew that was crazy. Long Island never sees hurricanes this early in the summer. But the ocean seemed to have forgotten. Over the roar of the wind, I heard a distant bellow, an angry, tortured sound that made my hair stand on end.**

 **Then a much closer noise, like mallets in the sand. A desperate voice—someone yelling, pounding on our cabin door.**

 **My mother sprang out of bed in her nightgown and threw open the lock.**

 **Grover stood framed in the doorway against a backdrop of pouring rain. But he wasnt. . . he wasn't exactly Grover.**

"Is it Grover's evil twin?" Leo asked

"No!" Grover shouted

 **"Searching all night," he gasped. "What were you thinking?"**

"He wasn't thinking" Annabeth muttered

 **My mother looked at me in terror—not scared of Grover, but of why he'd come.**

 **"Percy," she said, shouting to be heard over the rain. "What happened at school? What didn't you tell me?"**

 **I was frozen, looking at Grover. I couldn't understand what I was seeing.**

 **"O Zeu kai alloi theoi!" he yelled. "Its right behind me! Didn't you tell her?"**

 **I was too shocked to register that he'd just cursed in Ancient Greek, and I'd understood him perfectly. I was too shocked to wonder how Grover had gotten here by himself in the middle of the night. Because Grover didn't have his pants on—**

Thalia laughed "Seriously Grover where are your pants?"

 **and where his legs should be . . . where his legs should be . . .**

"Where? Where are his legs?" Leo shouted and stood up in front of Percy and grabbed his shoulders "Tell me! Tell me"

"Shut up Repair boy" Piper said and smacked his head "and sit down"

 **My mom looked at me sternly and talked in a tone she'd never used before: "Percy. Tell me now!"**

 **I stammered something about the old ladies at the fruit stand, and Mrs. Dodd's, and my mom stared at me, her face deathly pale in the flashes of lightning.**

 **She grabbed her purse, tossed me my rain jacket, and said, "Get to the car. Both of you. Go!"**

 **Grover ran for the Camaro—but he wasn't running, exactly. He was trotting, shaking his shaggy hindquarters, and suddenly his story about a muscular disorder in his legs made sense to me. I understood how he could run so fast and still limp when he walked.**

 **Because where his feet should be, there were no feet.**

"What did he have?!" Leo screamed

 **There were cloven hooves.**

"That's the end of the chapter" Thalia said

"I'm hungry!" Grover exclaimed "Let's eat dinner"

"You're always hungry goat boy" Thalia said

"I'm hungry too!" Amythyst shouted

"Come on everyone, let's go eat dinner" Percy said

"Yey!" the eleven year old shouted with glee and held on to Percy's arm "What are we having for dinner?"

"Anything you want actually, everything's here" Percy said

"Can I have gummy bears for dinner?"

"No" Trina said

"But daddy said I can have anything I want!" she screamed "Right?"

"Uhm…. Annabeth?"

"How about you eat gummy bears for dessert instead?" she asked the eleven year old girl

"Okay!"

"She still acts like a five year old sometimes" Trina muttered under her breath

Everyone took their seats and started eating and chatting.

"Hey guys" Hazel suddenly said to the group "Didn't the fates say that we would all have bedrooms here and other useful rooms?"

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot about that" Piper said

"We should explore this place after we're all finished eating dinner" Annabeth said

Everyone agreed and quickly finished their meals.


	5. Exploring the big big house

Exploring the big big house

Once everyone finished their dinner, they all went to explore the house they were in. Everyone was surprised when they realized how big the house was, there were rooms enough for everyone, that already had their names engraved at the door, there was a game room, a music room, an arena as big as the one at Camp Half-Blood, and a swimming pool. They went inside their rooms and was even more shocked when they saw that their rooms looked like their rooms back at their house or like their cabin back at camp. Even the closets had their clothes inside it, and all their other belongings back at their place. After exploring the house, Grover went back to the kitchen to continue to eat enchiladas. Frank, Hazel, and Reyna went to the Arena to train before going to bed. Rachel, Thalia, Nico, Leo, and Calypso went to the game room. Will and Nick went to the music room. Percy was talking to Annabeth in her room, and Jason was with Piper in his room. Annabeth suddenly had an idea, and dragged Percy to Jason's room.

She told Percy, Jason, and Piper about her idea and they all agreed. Annabeth thought that it would be nice if they got to know more about their future children. They knocked on Trina's room first.

"Come in" They heard Trina say from inside the room

Inside the room, Trina was lying on the bed and Josh was sitting next to her playing with her hair, while Jess and Amy were sitting at the floor, with Jess braiding Amy's hair.

"Hi" Trina said sitting up and gestured for them to come in "you need anything?"

"We just wanted to get to know you guys more" Piper said and sat at the floor next to Jess

"Oh I wish there was a sofa here" Jess said

With that said two sofa's appeared next to the bed "Thank's" Jess said looking up at the ceiling as Percy, Annabeth, Jason, and Piper sat at the couch.

"So" Annabeth started as she snuggled close to Percy "How long have you two been dating?" she asked Josh and Trina

"Two years" Josh answered and grabbed his girlfriends hand

"How old are you?" Percy asked

"Josh and I are 16, Trina's still 15, and our little one here" Jess answered and ruffled Amy's hair is 11"

"How about you Jess, are you dating anyone?" Piper asked

"Not anymore" Jess answered

"She just had a recent break up" Trina answered lying down on Josh's lap

"Alex Aldrin, Demigod son of Apollo" Amy told them

"AMY!" Jess screamed "What happened to not talking about what's his face?"

"Oops" the eleven year old laughed, stood up and sat at the couch next to Annabeth

"Anyways" Jess said "This is going to be my heartbreak free vacation, nothing here to remind me of what's his face, just going to be here, read a few books, and heal my heart"

"Was the break up that bad?" Piper asked her daughter

"Not going to talk about it anymore" Jess said standing up and sitting on the couch next to Piper "No. No. No. Let's talk about something else"

The eight of them talked and talked until Amythyst started yawning, which made Annabeth decide that it was time for bed.

The next morning, everyone was in the dining room eating breakfast, everyone except for Jess. Rachel, Hazel and Calypso were talking, Nico and Reyna had striked up a conversation as well, Nick was talking to Will, Thalia and Frank about Archery, Annabeth and Percy were talking to their two daughters, Jason and Piper were talking to Josh, Grover was busy eating, and Leo was tinkering with some tools.

"Good morning everyone" Jess greeted them when she walked in, all eyes were on her because instead of having her blonde hair and blue eyes, she now had wavy black hair and brown eyes.

"Weren't you blonde?" Reyna asked

"and with blue eyes?"

"I am" she answered "But I sort of feel like having this look today"

"You dyed your hair?" Rachel asked

"Oh no, no need for that" and with a blink of an eye her hair turned back to blonde and back to black

"How did you do that?" Annabeth asked

"Aphrodite powers" she said "Anyways… do we have some tea here?"

"Here" Josh said and handed her a cup of tea

"Thank you brother dearest" she smiled and kissed her brother's cheek

"Your in a good mood today" Nick told her

But before she could answer a bright light engulfed the room, and when it faded, there was a teenage boy with black hair on the floor, sleeping with his face facing the floor.

"Please tell me he's not who I think he is" Jess said talking to Nick

Nick came over and turned the boy around so everyone can see his face

"It's Alex!" Amy said laughing

"You just jinxed it last night, Jess" Josh told his sister

"Is that your ex?" Jason asked her

"Unfortunately, yes" she answered and sat down on the chair

"Demigod?" Frank asked

"Alex Aldrin, demigod son of Apollo" Amy told them

"We should probably wake him up" Will suggested

"No!" Jess screamed

"He's going to wake up eventually" Jason said "Better sooner than later"

Nick kicked his brother's leg which caused him to wake up

"Ow!" he screamed and opened his eyes which revealed his blue eyes "Nick!"

"Wait. Where am I?" he said sitting up and looking around, when he saw everyone his eyes were as wide as saucers, but when he saw Jess he froze and stared at her. Meanwhile, Jess was focused on her tea.

"Hi" Will told Alex which made him stop starring at Jess

Will and Nick explained to him where they were, and what they were doing there.

"So we're going to read books about Trina's dad"

"my dad too" Amy said pouting

"Sorry. Let me repeat that" he said "So we're going to read books about Trina and Amy's dad?"

"Yes" Amy said happily "Everyone meet Alex Aldrin, Son of Apollo, and head counselor for the Apollo cabin"

"Take a sit and have some breakfast, bro" Nick told his brother

Alex took the empty seat next to Jess, but as soon as Alex sat down, she stood up and took the seat next to Piper instead.

"What? You're afraid to seat next to me?" he asked her

She rolled her eyes "Sorry. I have an allergic reaction to Jerks" and went back to drinking her tea

"Want to talk about it?" Piper whispered to Jess

"Nah. I'll be fine" she whispered back

Hazel sensing that there was tension in the room decided to break the ice "Hey guys!" everyone looked at her "Last night Reyna, Frank, and I were at the arena, and he suddenly pressed a button on the wall, and the whole arena transformed into the woods like at Camp Half-Blood" she told them

"We could play some war games tonight" Reyna suggested

"Or Capture the flag" Thalia suggested

"What's capture the flag?" Calypso asked Leo who then explained to her what the game was about

The whole room suddenly got excited over the idea, and soon enough they were planning on a game of capture the flag that they would be doing tonight. After everyone was done with breakfast, they decide to go back to reading the books. Everyone sat at the living room, with Percy, Annabeth, Rachel, Thalia, and Grover on one couch; Amy, Josh, Trina, Nick and Jess on the couch in front of them; Jason, Piper, Leo, Calypso, and Reyna on another couch; Frank, Hazel, Nico, Will and Alex on the couch in front of them. The couches formed a square with a round coffee table on the middle.


	6. Chapter 4: Grover

**4.** **MY MOTHER TEACHES ME BULLFIGHTING** Grover read

"oh no" Grover muttered "I think I know what this chapter is about"

"Read it Goat boy" Thalia said "So all of us will actually get to find out what its about"

 **We tore through the night along dark country roads. Wind slammed against the Camaro. Rain lashed the windshield. I didn't know how my mom could see anything, but she kept her foot on the gas.**

 **Every time there was a flash of lightning, I looked at Grover sitting next to me in the backseat and I wondered if I'd gone insane,**

"You are insane" Rachel said

 **or if he was wearing some kind of shag-carpet pants. But, no, the smell was one I remembered from kindergarten field trips to the petting zoo— lanolin, like from wool. The smell of a wet barnyard animal.**

"I am not a barnyard animal" Grover grumbled

"Sorry"

 **All I could think to say was, "So, you and my mom. . . know each other?"**

"Smooth Percy Smooth" Rachel laughed

"I couldn't think of anything else to say!"

"Or you didn't think at all" Annabeth said

 **Grover's eyes flitted to the rear view mirror, though there were no cars behind us. "Not exactly," he said. "I mean, we've never met in person. But she knew I was watching you. "**

"You sound like a stalker, Grover" Frank told him

 **"Watching me?"**

 **"Keeping tabs on you. Making sure you were okay. But I wasn't faking being your friend," he added hastily. "I am your friend. "**

 **"Urn . . . what are you, exactly?"**

 **"That doesn't matter right now. "**

 **"It doesn't matter? From the waist down, my best friend is a donkey—"**

Everyone except for Grover burst out laughing, while Grover glared at Percy

 **Grover let out a sharp, throaty "Blaa-ha-ha!"**

 **I'd heard him make that sound before, but I'd always assumed it was a nervous laugh. Now I realized it was more of an irritated bleat.**

 **"Goat!" he cried.**

 **"What?"**

 **"I'm a goat from the waist down. "**

"You just said it didn't matter" Amythyst said

 **"You just said it didn't matter. "**

"I really do think like dad" the eleven year old muttered under her breath

 **"Blaa-ha-ha! There are satyrs who would trample you under hoof for such an insult!"**

 **"Whoa. Wait. Satyrs. You mean like . . . Mr. Brunner's myths?"**

 **"Were those old ladies at the fruit stand a myth, Percy? Was Mrs. Dodds a myth?"**

 **"So you admit there was a Mrs. Dodds!"**

"You're already running for your life and that's what you're thinking?" Hazel asked shaking her head

 **"Of course. "**

 **"Then why—"**

 **"The less you knew, the fewer monsters you'd attract," Grover said, like that should be perfectly obvious. "We put Mist over the humans eyes. We hoped you'd think the Kindly One was a hallucination. But it was no good. You started to realize who you are. "**

 **"Who I—wait a minute, what do you mean?"**

 **The weird bellowing noise rose up again somewhere behind us, closer than before. Whatever was chasing us was still on our trail.**

"What is that?" Frank leaned in closer, not wanting to miss any detail

 **"Percy," my mom said, "there's too much to explain and not enough time. We have to get you to safety. "**

 **"Safety from what? Who's after me?"**

"Possibly every monster out there" Nico told him

 **"Oh, nobody much," Grover said, obviously still miffed about the donkey comment. "Just the Lord of the Dead and a few of his blood-thirstiest minions. "**

"Grover! You're scaring him!" Will blurted out

 **"Grover!"**

 **"Sorry, Mrs. Jackson. Could you drive faster, please?"**

 **I tried to wrap my mind around what was happening, but I couldn't do it. I knew this wasn't a dream. I had no imagination. I could never dream up something this weird.**

"Actually, I think you have too much of an imagination" Annabeth argued

 **My mom made a hard left. We swerved onto a narrower road, racing past darkened farmhouses and wooded hills and PICK YOUR OWN STRAWBERRIES signs on white picket fences.**

"Your getting closer, just a little more" Piper muttered under her breath

 **"Where are we going?" I asked.**

 **"The summer camp I told you about. " My mothers voice was tight; she was trying for my sake not to be scared. "The place your father wanted to send you. "**

 **"The place you didn't want me to go. "**

 **"Please, dear," my mother begged. "This is hard enough. Try to understand. You're in danger. "**

 **"Because some old ladies cut yarn. "**

"Maybe. But not just because of that!" Hazel exclaimed

 **"Those weren't old ladies," Grover said. "Those were the Fates. Do you know what it means—the fact they appeared in front of you? They only do that when you're about to . . . when someones about to die. "**

"Grover!" almost everybody exclaimed

"Sorry. I was freaking out to you know!"

 **"Whoa. You said you. "**

 **"No I didn't. I said someone. "**

 **"You meant you. As in me. "**

 **"I meant you, like someone. Not you, you. "**

"Uh what?" Alex asked

"He meant 'you' as in someone, anyone" Jess explained to him

"So you're talking to me again?" Alex smiled towards her

"Shut up"

 **"Boys!" my mom said.**

 **She pulled the wheel hard to the right, and I got a glimpse of a figure shed swerved to avoid—a dark fluttering shape now lost behind us in the storm.**

"Fluttering? The furies?" Amy asked

 **"What was that?" I asked.**

 **"Were almost there," my mother said, ignoring my question. "Another mile. Please. Please. Please. "**

"Just one more mile" Everyone thought "They needed to get to camp. Just one more mile"

 **I didn't know where there was, but I found myself leaning forward in the car, anticipating, wanting us to arrive.**

Much like almost everybody in the room. They all were worried for Percy, Grover and Sally.

 **Outside, nothing but rain and darkness—the kind of empty countryside you get way out on the tip of Long Island. I thought about Mrs. Dodd's and the moment when she'd changed into the thing with pointed teeth and leathery wings. My limbs went numb from delayed shock. She really hadn't been human. She'd meant to kill me.**

"She means to kill all of us" Nico said

Everybody looked at him

"What? All monsters are meant to kill demigods. Stop looking at me like that"

 **Then I thought about Mr. Brunner . . . and the sword he had thrown me. Before I could ask Grover about that, the hair rose on the back of my neck. There was a blinding flash, a jaw-rattling boom!, and our car exploded.**

Everybody in the room was silent

 **I remember feeling weightless, like I was being crushed, fried, and hosed down all at the same time.**

 **I peeled my forehead off the back of the drivers seat and said, "Ow. "**

 **"Percy!" my mom shouted.**

'At least they were still conscious' they all thought

 **"I'm okay. . . . "**

 **I tried to shake off the daze. I wasn't dead.**

'Good' they thought

 **The car hadn't really exploded. We'd swerved into a ditch. Our drivers-side doors were wedged in the mud. The roof had cracked open like an eggshell and rain was pouring in.**

 **Lightning.**

"Zeus" Thalia whispered to herself suddenly mad at her father

 **That was the only explanation. Wed been blasted right off the road. Next to me in the backseat was a big motionless lump. "Grover!"**

"Uh Oh"

 **He was slumped over, blood trickling from the side of his mouth. I shook his furry hip, thinking, No! Even if you are half barnyard animal, you're my best friend and I don't want you to die!**

"That's so sweet" Calypso looked at Percy smiling

 **Then he groaned "Food," and I knew there was hope.**

Everybody couldn't help but laugh at that

 **"Percy," my mother said, "we have to . . . " Her voice faltered.**

 **I looked back. In a flash of lightning, through the mud-spattered rear windshield, I saw a figure lumbering toward us on the shoulder of the road. The sight of it made my skin crawl. It was a dark silhouette of a huge guy, like a football player. He seemed to be holding a blanket over his head. His top half was bulky and fuzzy. His upraised hands made it look like he had horns.**

"Made it look like he had horns?" Reyna asked realizing who the monster was

 **I swallowed hard. "Who is—"**

 **"Percy," my mother said, deadly serious. "Get out of the car. "**

 **My mother threw herself against the drivers-side door. It was jammed shut in the mud. I tried mine. Stuck too. I looked up desperately at the hole in the roof. It migh'tve been an exit, but the edges were sizzling and smoking.**

 **"Climb out the passengers side!" my mother told me. "Percy—you have to run. Do you see that big tree?"**

"Oh great. Yes. Everybody go to the big tree" Thalia grumbled crossing her arms

"What's so bad about the big tree?" Alex asked

"Oh you guys don't know?" Annabeth looked at the kids from the future

"Oh we do" Jess answered "But Nick and that Idiot doesn't" she pointed at Alex

 **"What?"**

 **Another flash of lightning, and through the smoking hole in the roof I saw the tree she meant: a huge, White House Christmas tree-sized pine at the crest of the nearest hill.**

 **"That's the property line," my mom said. "Get over that hill and you'll see a big farmhouse down in the valley. Run and don't look back. Yell for help. Don't stop until you reach the door. "**

 **"Mom, you're coming too. "**

 **Her face was pale, her eyes as sad as when she looked at the ocean.**

 **"No!" I shouted. "You are coming with me. Help me carry Grover. "**

 **"Food!" Grover moaned, a little louder.**

Again everybody laughed at this, while Grover's ears turned pink.

 **The man with the blanket on his head kept coming toward us, making his grunting, snorting noises. As he got closer, I realized he couldn't be holding a blanket over his head, because his hands—huge meaty hands—were swinging at his sides. There was no blanket. Meaning the bulky, fuzzy mass that was too big to be his head . . . was his head. And the points that looked like horns . . .**

 **"He doesn't want us," my mother told me. "He wants you. Besides, I can't cross the property line. "**

 **"But. . . "**

 **"We don't have time, Percy. Go. Please. "**

 **I got mad, then—mad at my mother, at Grover the goat, at the thing with horns that was lumbering toward us slowly and deliberately like, like a bull.**

"Grover the goat" Amythyst said laughing "that sounds like a disney show"

 **I climbed across Grover and pushed the door open into the rain. "Were going together. Come on, Mom. "**

 **"I told you—"**

 **"Mom! I am not leaving you. Help me with Grover. "**

Alex could relate to Percy at this, if he were Percy he never would have left her either. This made him miss his mom more. Leo, Frank, Jason and Thalia thought of their mothers as well. Though Thalia wasn't really sure if she would've done the same thing, considering how rocky her relationship with her mom was.

 **I didn't wait for her answer. I scrambled outside, dragging Grover from the car. He was surprisingly light, but I couldn't have carried him very far if my mom hadn't come to my aid.**

 **Together, we draped Grover's arms over our shoulders and started stumbling uphill through wet waist-high grass.**

 **Glancing back, I got my first clear look at the monster. He was seven feet tall, easy, his arms and legs like something from the cover of Muscle Man magazine—bulging biceps and triceps and a bunch of other ceps, all stuffed like baseballs under vein-webbed skin. He wore no clothes except underwear—I mean, bright white Fruit of the Looms—**

"Why do I find that funny?" Will tried to stop himself from laughing

 **which would've looked funny, except that the top half of his body was so scary. Coarse brown hair started at about his belly button and got thicker as it reached his shoulders.**

 **His neck was a mass of muscle and fur leading up to his enormous head, which had a snout as long as my arm, snotty nostrils with a gleaming brass ring, cruel black eyes, and horns—enormous black-and-white horns with points you just couldn't get from an electric sharpener.**

 **I recognized the monster, all right. He had been in one of the first stories Mr. Brunner told us. But he couldn't be real.**

 **I blinked the rain out of my eyes. "Thats—"**

 **"Pasiphaes son," my mother said. "I wish Id known how badly they want to kill you. "**

"I met him once" Trina said rubbing her shoulders

"You did?" Percy asked

"Yeah. I think the main reason why he wanted to kill me, was because I'm your daughter"

 **"But hes the Min—"**

 **"Don't say his name," she warned. "Names have power. "**

"Your mother knows a lot" Reyna observed

 **The pine tree was still way too far—a hundred yards uphill at least.**

 **I glanced behind me again.**

 **The bull-man hunched over our car, looking in the windows—or not looking, exactly. More like snuffling, nuzzling. I wasn't sure why he bothered, since we were only about fifty feet away.**

"He can't really see you, Seaweed brain. He's following your scent"

 **"Food?" Grover moaned.**

 **"Shhh," I told him. "Mom, whats he doing? Doesn't he see us?"**

 **"His sight and hearing are terrible," she said. "He goes by smell. But hell figure out where we are soon enough. "**

"Really smart" Reyna commented

 **As if on cue, the bull-man bellowed in rage. He picked up Gabes Camaro by the torn roof, the chassis creaking and groaning. He raised the car over his head and threw it down the road. It slammed into the wet asphalt and skidded in a shower of sparks for about half a mile before coming to a stop. The gas tank exploded.**

"So much for not getting a scratch" Leo said smirking

 **Not a scratch, I remembered Gabe saying.**

"Oopsie" Amythyst giggled

 **Oops.**

"Oh no" Amythyst said face palming "I am a little seaweed brain"

"Yeah you are" Trina said kissing her sisters cheek

 **"Percy," my mom said. "When he sees us, hell charge. Wait until the last second, then jump out of the way— directly sideways. He can't change directions very well once he's charging. Do you understand?"**

"Why didn't she tell me that!" Trina exclaimed

"I told you that" Josh argued "But you didn't listen to me"

"So its my fault?" Trina huffed putting her arms on her hips in frustration

"Yeah. It is Trina"

"Its not my fault! It was noisy, it was windy, I didn't hear you right"

"You heard me, you just didn't want to listen to me"

"How is hearing different from listening!?"

"Oh like you don't know"

Everybody was looking back and forth at the two like they were watching a tennis match.

"Oh will you shut up!" Jess screamed at the two, getting up and sitting between them "Please read on Uncle Goat boy"

 **"How do you know all this?"**

 **"I've been worried about an attack for a long time. I should have expected this. I was selfish, keeping you near me. "**

"It wasn't selfish" Piper whispered

 **"Keeping me near you? But—"**

 **Another bellow of rage, and the bull-man started tromping uphill.**

 **He'd smelled us.**

 **The pine tree was only a few more yards, but the hill was getting steeper and slicker, and Grover wasn't getting any lighter.**

 **The bull-man closed in. Another few seconds and he'd be on top of us.**

 **My mother must've been exhausted, but she shouldered Grover. "Go, Percy! Separate! Remember what I said. "**

 **I didn't want to split up, but I had the feeling she was right**

"Sometimes splitting up is right" Josh agreed

"What do you mean by that?!" Trina faced him

"Oh dear gods of Olympus" Jess said placing her hands on both of their mouths "Don't start again, I want to find out how this chapter ends ASAP"

"I don't know who was worse, these two or Percy and Annabeth" Thalia whispered to Grover

 **—** **it was our only chance. I sprinted to the left, turned, and saw the creature bearing down on me. His black eyes glowed with hate. He reeked like rotten meat.**

 **He lowered his head and charged, those razor-sharp horns aimed straight at my chest.**

 **The fear in my stomach made me want to bolt, but that wouldn't work. I could never outrun this thing. So I held my ground, and at the last moment, I jumped to the side.**

 **The bull-man stormed past like a freight train, then bellowed with frustration and turned, but not toward me this time, toward my mother, who was setting Grover down in the grass.**

"Oh no" Hazel leaned closer

 **We'd reached the crest of the hill. Down the other side I could see a valley, just as my mother had said, and the lights of a farmhouse glowing yellow through the rain. But that was half a mile away. We'd never make it.**

"Can't you be a little more optimistic" Annabeth said

"She's right. You are such a pessimist, Percy" Calypso told him

 **The bull-man grunted, pawing the ground. He kept eyeing my mother, who was now retreating slowly downhill, back toward the road, trying to lead the monster away from Grover.**

 **"Run, Percy!" she told me. "I can't go any farther. Run!"**

 **But I just stood there, frozen in fear, as the monster charged her. She tried to sidestep, as she'd told me to do, but the monster had learned his lesson. His hand shot out and grabbed her by the neck as she tried to get away. He lifted her as she struggled, kicking and pummeling the air.**

 **"Mom!"**

 **She caught my eyes, managed to choke out one last word: "Go!"**

 **Then, with an angry roar, the monster closed his fists around my mothers neck, and she dissolved before my eyes, melting into light, a shimmering golden form, as if she were a holographic projection. A blinding flash, and she was simply . . . gone.**

 **"No!"**

"She's not dead" Amythyst shook her head "Not dead. Not dead. Right?"

"Of course not" Her big sister told her "We just saw her last week"

 **Anger replaced my fear. New found strength burned in my limbs—the same rush of energy I'd gotten when Mrs. Dodds grew talons.**

 **The bull-man bore down on Grover, who lay helpless in the grass. The monster hunched over, snuffling my best friend, as if he were about to lift Grover up and make him dissolve too.**

 **I couldn't allow that.**

 **I stripped off my red rain jacket.**

 **"Hey!" I screamed, waving the jacket, running to one side of the monster. "Hey, stupid! Ground beef!"**

"You just love insulting monsters"

 **"Raaaarrrrr!" The monster turned toward me, shaking his meaty fists.**

 **I had an idea—a stupid idea, but better than no idea at all.**

"Much like all your ideas" Annabeth looked at him rolling her eyes

"Better than nothing, Wise girl" he winked at her

 **I put my back to the big pine tree and waved my red jacket in front of the bull-man, thinking I'd jump out of the way at the last moment.**

"Seriously!?" Thalia screamed punching his arm

"Sorry!"

 **But it didn't happen like that.**

"Of course it didn't" Piper commented

 **The bull-man charged too fast, his arms out to grab me whichever way I tried to dodge.**

 **Time slowed down.**

"Kind of like in a movie" Rachel said

 **My legs tensed. I couldn't jump sideways, so I leaped straight up, kicking off from the creatures head, using it as a springboard, turning in midair, and landing on his neck.**

"That's Impressive!" Josh and Jason said at the same time "How'd you do that?"

"Wait. It says here" Grover told the two

 **How did I do that? I didn't have time to figure it out. A millisecond later, the monsters head slammed into the tree**

Thalia glared at Percy

 **and the impact nearly knocked my teeth out.**

 **The bull-man staggered around, trying to shake me. I locked my arms around his horns to keep from being thrown. Thunder and lightning were still going strong. The rain was in my eyes. The smell of rotten meat burned my nostrils.**

 **The monster shook himself around and bucked like a rodeo bull. He should have just backed up into the tree and smashed me flat, but I was starting to realize that this thing had only one gear: forward.**

 **Meanwhile, Grover started groaning in the grass. I wanted to yell at him to shut up, but the way I was getting tossed around, if I opened my mouth I'd bite my own tongue off.**

 **"Food!" Grover moaned.**

 **The bull-man wheeled toward him, pawed the ground again, and got ready to charge. I thought about how he had squeezed the life out of my mother, made her disappear in a flash of light, and rage filled me like high-octane fuel. I got both hands around one horn and I pulled backward with all my might. The monster tensed, gave a surprised grunt, then—snap!**

"You didn't" Reyna said

"He did" Trina smiled at her father

"But you were twelve!"

 **The bull-man screamed and flung me through the air. I landed flat on my back in the grass. My head smacked against a rock. When I sat up, my vision was blurry, but I had a horn in my hands, a ragged bone weapon the size of a knife.**

"No way" Jason said impressed at Percy

 **The monster charged.**

"Go get him daddy!" Amy cheered

 **Without thinking, I rolled to one side and came up kneeling. As the monster barreled past, I drove the broken horn straight into his side, right up under his furry rib cage.**

 **The bull-man roared in agony. He flailed, clawing at his chest, then began to disintegrate—not like my mother, in a flash of golden light, but like crumbling sand, blown away in chunks by the wind, the same way Mrs. Dodds had burst apart.**

Everyone who didn't know about this was impressed at Percy.

 **The monster was gone.**

 **The rain had stopped. The storm still rumbled, but only in the distance. I smelled like livestock and my knees were shaking. My head felt like it was splitting open. I was weak and scared and trembling with grief I'd just seen my mother vanish. I wanted to lie down and cry, but there was Grover, needing my help, so I managed to haul him up and stagger down into the valley, toward the lights of the farmhouse. I was crying, calling for my mother, but I held on to Grover—I wasn't going to let him go.**

"Thank you, Percy"

"No problem G man"

 **The last thing I remember is collapsing on a wooden porch, looking up at a ceiling fan circling above me, moths flying around a yellow light, and the stern faces of a familiar-looking bearded man**

"Chiron" Piper smiled

 **and a pretty girl, her blond hair curled like a princess.**

Everyone looked at Annabeth who was trying hard not to blush

"Aww he called you pretty the first time he saw you" Jess squealed

 **They both looked down at me, and the girl said, "He's the one. He must be. "**

"He really is the one, huh?"

"Shut up, Mclean"

 **"Silence, Annabeth," the man said.**

"Yeah. Silence Annabeth" Piper said laughing

 **"He's still conscious. Bring him inside. "**

"Did you know how heavy you were?" Annabeth grumbled "and you really did smell like livestock"

"Well that's the end of the chapter" Grover told them "Who's reading next?"


	7. Chapter 5: Frank

**5.** **I PLAY PINOCHLE WITH A HORSE** Frank read

"Chiron?" Hazel asked and Percy nodded

 **I had weird dreams full of barnyard animals. Most of them wanted to kill me. The rest wanted food.**

"That's probably Grover" Annabeth looked at the Satyr

"Speaking of food, can we eat after this chapter?"

"Sure. Why not?" Annabeth answered and everyone nodded

 **I must've woken up several times, but what I heard and saw made no sense, so I just passed out again. I remember lying in a soft bed, being spoon-fed something that tasted like buttered popcorn, only it was pudding. The girl with curly blond hair hovered over me, smirking as she scraped drips off my chin with the spoon.**

"Aw Mommy" Amythyst cooed

"Does that remind you of anything Jess?" Nick smirked at the blond girl

"I do remember a blond girl with a broken leg being spoon fed by a son of Apollo" Josh said teasing his sister

"Which one of my brothers was that again, Josh?" Nick asked his best friend while looking at Alex, who looked amused

"If you two don't shut up, I'm breaking your leg" Jess threatened

"Shutting up now" Nick faced Frank "Please read, Mr. Zhang"

 **When she saw my eyes open, she asked, "What will happen at the summer solstice?"**

"Yes we all want to know what happened" Jason said and everyone who didn't know nodded their heads

 **I managed to croak, "What?"**

 **She looked around, as if afraid someone would overhear. "Whats going on? What was stolen? We've only got a few weeks!"**

"There was a time when you thought he knew the answers" Thalia told Annabeth "Then you realized he was a kelp head"

"An aqua dude" Nico added

"A seaweed brain" Trina continued

"Feeling the love guys" Percy said sarcastically

 **"I'm sorry," I mumbled, "I don't. . . "**

 **Somebody knocked on the door, and the girl quickly filled my mouth with pudding.**

"Best way to shut someone up" Grover said

"Or you could kick them" Thalia told him

"Or punch them in the face" added Reyna

"Or stab them with your dagger" Annabeth continued

"Hit them with a hairbrush" Rachel said

"Charmspeak them to shut up" Piper said joining them

"Scream at them to Shut up" Calypso said

"Or throw precious gems at them" Hazel said laughing

"Throw them in the lake" added Trina

"Shock them with lightning" Jess said

"You girls are violent" Frank said scooting away from the girls and the guys nodded in agreement with Frank

"In reality, they just kiss the guy to shut up" Amythyst said and all the girls stared at her "Oh don't pretend that you don't do it. My mom does it to dad, Trina to Josh, even Jess with Alex, well used to anyway"

"I still like our suggestions better" Jess told them

"I agree" said Thalia and all the other girls nodded

"Just read, Frank" Will told him "Before they actually start doing what they just said"

"How can I get you to shut up?" Nico asked

"You know I think Amythyst has the best suggestion" Will said winking

"Read Frank" Nico told him

 **The next time I woke up, the girl was gone.**

"Aw you miss her already" Thalia teased

 **A husky blond dude, like a surfer, stood in the corner of the bedroom keeping watch over me. He had blue eyes— at least a dozen of them—on his cheeks, his forehead, the backs of his hands.**

"Argus" Piper smiled

 **When I finally came around for good, there was nothing weird about my surroundings, except that they were nicer than I was used to. I was sitting in a deck chair on a huge porch, gazing across a meadow at green hills in the distance. The breeze smelled like strawberries. There was a blanket over my legs, a pillow behind my neck. All that was great, but my mouth felt like a scorpion had been using it for a nest.**

"How would you even know that, Seaweed brain?"

"I just do"

 **My tongue was dry and nasty and every one of my teeth hurt.**

 **On the table next to me was a tall drink. It looked like iced apple juice, with a green straw and a paper parasol stuck through a maraschino cherry.**

 **My hand was so weak I almost dropped the glass once I got my fingers around it.**

 **"Careful," a familiar voice said.**

"Is it mommy?" Amythyst asked

 **Grover was leaning against the porch railing,**

"Oh. Not mommy"

 **looking like he hadn't slept in a week.**

"Just a few days" Grover told him

 **Under one arm, he cradled a shoe box. He was wearing blue jeans, Converse hi-tops and a bright orange T-shirt that said CAMP HALF-BLOOD. Just plain old Grover, Not the goat boy.**

"Not Grover the goat boy from Disney Channel" Leo said looking at Amythyst remembering her comment from the earlier chapter

 **So maybe I'd had a nightmare. Maybe my mom was okay. We were still on vacation, and we'd stopped here at this big house for some reason. And . . .**

Everybody felt bad for Percy at this point

 **"You saved my life," Grover said. "I. . . well, the least I could do . . . I went back to the hill. I thought you might want this. "**

 **Reverently, he placed the shoe box in my lap.**

 **Inside was a black-and-white bulls horn, the base jagged from being broken off, the tip splattered with dried blood. It hadn't been a nightmare.**

 **"The Minotaur," I said.**

 **"Urn, Percy, it isn't a good idea—"**

"He's not going to listen to you, Grover" Annabeth said shaking her head and looking at her boyfriend

 **"That's what they call him in the Greek myths, isn't it?" I demanded. "The Minotaur. Half man, half bull. "**

"Half man, half bull, half lover of fruit of the looms" Percy said

 **Grover shifted uncomfortably. "You've been out for two days. How much do you remember?"**

"He remembers barnyard animals" Rachel giggled

 **"My mom. Is she really . . . "**

 **He looked down.**

 **I stared across the meadow. There were groves of trees, a winding stream, acres of strawberries spread out under the blue sky. The valley was surrounded by rolling hills, and the tallest one, directly in front of us, was the one with the huge pine tree on top. Even that looked beautiful in the sunlight.**

"Thank you" Thalia said

"What?" Leo asked "Why are you thanking him?"

"Maybe someone will explain it later" she told him

 **My mother was gone. The whole world should be black and cold. Nothing should look beautiful.**

 **"I'm sorry," Grover sniffled. "I'm a failure. I'm—I'm the worst satyr in the world. "**

"You're not a failure, Grover" Percy patted his friend at the back

"Yeah. I wouldn't be here if it weren't for you" Annabeth added

"Me neither" Nico said

"You found all of us and guided us to camp" Thalia said

 **He moaned, stomping his foot so hard it came off. I mean, the Converse hi-top came off. The inside was filled with Styrofoam, except for a hoof-shaped hole.**

 **"Oh, Styx!" he mumbled.**

"No cursing" Amythyst crossed her arms

 **Thunder rolled across the clear sky.**

"See?" the little girl faced him "No cursing!"

"Yes ma'am" Grover sat up straight and had the sudden urge to salute the girl

 **As he struggled to get his hoof back in the fake foot, I thought, Well, that settles it.**

 **Grover was a satyr. I was ready to bet that if I shaved his curly brown hair, I'd find tiny horns on his head. But I was too miserable to care that satyrs existed, or even minotaurs. All that meant was my mom really had been squeezed into nothingness, dissolved into yellow light.**

 **I was alone. An orphan. I would have to live with . . . Smelly Gabe?**

"Whose smelly Gabe?" Alex and Will asked

"Oh right. You two weren't here for that chapter yet" Percy said and explained to them who smelly Gabe was

 **No. That would never happen. I would live on the streets first. I would pretend I was seventeen and join the army. I'd do something.**

"You couldn't have passed for seventeen" Annabeth argued

"Join the army?" Frank asked

"What? I'd do something, anything so I wouldn't have to live with smelly Gabe"

"I probably would have done the same thing" Alex agreed

"You don't even have a step father" Jess argued and Alex just shrugged, he never told her about his step father, he never told anyone about him. But he could relate to Percy Jackson's hatred towards his stepfather because he felt exactly the same about his own.

"Or you could just go from one foster her to another, that's what I did" Leo suggested

"Or just you know, stay at Camp Half blood" Piper stated

 **Grover was still sniffling. The poor kid—poor goat, satyr, whatever—looked as if he expected to be hit.**

 **I said, "It wasn't your fault. ". . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .**

"It's never your fault Grover" Thalia told him

 **"Yes, it was. I was supposed to protect you. "**

"You couldn't have stopped that from happening, it was Percy's destiny to face the minotaur" Annabeth said

 **"Did my mother ask you to protect me?". . .**

 **"No. But that's my job. I'm a keeper. At least. . . I was. "**

 **"But why . . . " I suddenly felt dizzy, my vision swimming.**

"Another water comparison" Reyna stated

 **"Don't strain yourself," Grover said. "Here. " He helped me hold my glass and put the straw to my lips.**

 **I recoiled at the taste, because I was expecting apple juice. It wasn't that at all. It was chocolate-chip cookies. Liquid cookies. And not just any cookies—my moms homemade blue chocolate-chip cookies, buttery and hot, with the chips still melting. Drinking it, my whole body felt warm and good, full of energy. My grief didn't go away, but I felt as if my mom had just brushed her hand against my cheek, given me a cookie the way she used to when I was small, and told me everything was going to be okay.**

"Everything will be okay" Amythyst assured him

"Thanks" Percy smiled at her

 **Before I knew it, I'd drained the glass. I stared into it, sure I'd just had a warm drink, but the ice cubes hadn't even melted.**

 **"Was it good?" Grover asked.**

 **I nodded.**

 **"What did it taste like?" He sounded so wistful, I felt guilty.**

 **"Sorry," I said. "I should've let you taste. "**

 **His eyes got wide. "No! That's not what I meant. I just. . . wondered. "**

"It always taste different for other people" Grover said

"Mine tasted like apple juice" Josh told him

"You really are boring" Jess said

"When I first had it, it tasted like chicken soup" Nick grumbled "It was weird"

"Mine tasted the same as daddy" Amythyst smiled

 **"Chocolate-chip cookies," I said. "My moms. Homemade. "**

 **He sighed. "And how do you feel?"**

 **"Like I could throw Nancy Bobofit a hundred yards. "**

"Is that good?" Will asked

"Very"

 **"That's good," he said. "That's good.**

"Really really good"

 **I don't think you could risk drinking any more of that stuff. "**

 **"What do you mean?"**

 **He took the empty glass from me gingerly, as if it were dynamite, and set it back on the table. "Come on. Chiron and Mr. D are waiting. "**

 **The porch wrapped all the way around the farmhouse.**

 **My legs felt wobbly, trying to walk that far. Grover offered to carry the Minotaur horn, but I held on to it. I'd paid for that souvenir the hard way. I wasn't going to let it go.**

 **As we came around the opposite end of the house, I caught my breath.**

 **We must've been on the north shore of Long Island, because on this side of the house, the valley marched all the way up to the water, which glittered about a mile in the distance. Between here and there, I simply couldn't process everything I was seeing. The landscape was dotted with buildings that looked like ancient Greek architecture—an open-air pavilion, an amphitheater, a circular arena—except that they all looked brand new, their white marble columns sparkling in the sun. In a nearby sandpit, a dozen high school-age kids and satyrs played volleyball. Canoes glided across a small lake. Kids in bright orange T-shirts like Grover's were chasing each other around a cluster of cabins nestled in the woods. Some shot targets at an archery range. Others rode horses down a wooded trail, and, unless I was hallucinating, some of their horses had wings.**

Everybody smiled at the thought of camp.

 **Down at the end of the porch, two men sat across from each other at a card table. The blond-haired girl who'd spoon-fed me popcorn-flavored pudding was leaning on the porch rail next to them.**

"Aw you waited for him" Hazel said

"No. I was just called by Chiron to be there"

 **The man facing me was small, but porky. He had a red nose, big watery eyes, and curly hair so black it was almost purple. He looked like those paintings of baby angels— what do you call them, hubbubs? No, cherubs. That's it. He looked like a cherub who'd turned middle-aged in a trailer park. He wore a tiger-pattern Hawaiian shirt, and he would've fit right in at one of Gabe's poker parties, except I got the feeling this guy could've out-gambled even my stepfather.**

"He really could've" muttered Grover

 **"That's Mr. D," Grover murmured to me. "Hes the camp director.**

"Not anymore" Josh told the campers who weren't from the future"

 **Be polite. The girl, that's Annabeth Chase. Shes just a camper,**

"Just a camper? What does that mean?" she raised her eyebrows at Grover

 **but shes been here longer than just about anybody. And you already know Chiron. . . . "**

"Chiron the pony!" Amythyst giggled

"I don't think he'd appreciate you calling him that" Piper told her

"He doesn't care. I call him that all the time, to tease him"

 **He pointed at the guy whose back was to me.**

 **First, I realized he was sitting in the wheelchair. Then I recognized the tweed jacket, the thinning brown hair, the scraggly beard.**

 **"Mr. Brunner!" I cried.**

 **The Latin teacher turned and smiled at me. His eyes had that mischievous glint they sometimes got in class when he pulled a pop quiz and made all the multiple choice answers B.**

"He still does that" Nick informed them

 **"Ah, good, Percy," he said. "Now we have four for pinochle. "**

 **He offered me a chair to the right of Mr. D, who looked at me with bloodshot eyes and heaved a great sigh. "Oh, I suppose I must say it. Welcome to Camp Half-Blood. There. Now, don't expect me to be glad to see you. "**

"Harsh" Calypso muttered

 **"Uh, thanks. " I scooted a little farther away from him because, if there was one thing I had learned from living with Gabe, it was how to tell when an adult has been hitting the happy juice. If Mr. D was a stranger to alcohol, I was a satyr.**

"Your a satyr?!" Leo asked "I had no idea!"

"Shut up"

 **"Annabeth?" Mr. Brunner called to the blond girl.**

Percy and Annabeth's daughters leaned forward in anticipation. They heard about this story before, but this was different. Its different having to hear it from their fathers perspective the moment it was happening.

 **She came forward and Mr. Brunner introduced us. "This young lady nursed you back to health, Percy. Annabeth, my dear, why don't you go check on Percy's bunk? We'll be putting him in cabin eleven for now. "**

 **Annabeth said, "Sure, Chiron. "**

"That's it?" Trina asked

"What were you expecting?" Percy asked

 **She was probably my age, maybe a couple of inches taller, and a whole lot more athletic looking. With her deep tan and her curly blond hair, she was almost exactly what I thought a stereotypical California girl would look like, except her eyes ruined the image.**

"What do you mean by that?!" Annabeth screamed in his ear

"Wait for it"

 **They were startling gray, like storm clouds; pretty, but intimidating, too, as if she were analyzing the best way to take me down in a fight.**

"I actually was"

 **She glanced at the minotaur horn in my hands, then back at me. I imagined she was going to say, You killed a minotaur! or Wow, youre so awesome! or something like that.**

"You wish!"

 **Instead she said, "You drool when you sleep. "**

At this everyone couldn't help but laugh, especially their daughters who were now rolling on the floor laughing their butts off.

"He… he… still drools….in his…. sleep" Amythyst said between laughs

"You didn't inherit that, did you?" Annabeth asked her future daughter

"Nope" she shook her head

"I didn't" Trina told them "but she did" she said pointing at her sister

"No I didn't!"

"Yes you did, Amy" Jess told her

"You drooled a lot when you were a baby" Josh said

"Well I don't anymore" She crossed her arms a little furious

"Hey come here" Percy called her seeing that she really was furious "We droolers got to stick together" he smiled at Amy as she sat beside him

 **Then she sprinted off down the lawn, her blond hair flying behind her.**

 **"So," I said, anxious to change the subject. "You, uh, work here, Mr. Brunner?".**

 **"Not Mr. Brunner," the ex—Mr. Brunner said. "I'm afraid that was a pseudonym. You may call me Chiron. "**

 **"Okay. " Totally confused, I looked at the director. "And Mr. D . . . does that stand for something?"**

 **Mr. D stopped shuffling the cards. He looked at me like I'd just belched loudly. "Young man, names are powerful things. You don't just go around using them for no reason. "**

 **"Oh. Right. Sorry. "**

"Was that sarcastic?" Leo asked

"I actually don't remember"

 **"I must say, Percy," Chiron-Brunner broke in, "I'm glad to see you alive. Its been a long time since I've made a house call to a potential camper. I'd hate to think I've wasted my time. "**

 **"House call?"**

 **"My year at Yancy Academy, to instruct you. We have satyrs at most schools, of course, keeping a lookout. But Grover alerted me as soon as he met you. He sensed you were something special, so I decided to come upstate. I convinced the other Latin teacher to . . . ah, take a leave of absence. "**

 **I tried to remember the beginning of the school year. It seemed like so long ago, but I did have a fuzzy memory of there being another Latin teacher my first week at Yancy. Then, without explanation, he had disappeared and Mr. Brunner had taken the class.**

 **"You came to Yancy just to teach me?" I asked.**

"Don't feel so special, kelp head"

 **Chiron nodded. "Honestly, I wasn't sure about you at first. We contacted your mother, let her know we were keeping an eye on you in case you were ready for Camp Half-Blood. But you still had so much to learn. Nevertheless, you made it here alive, and that's always the first test. "**

"What's the second test?" Calypso asked curiously

"Staying alive" Annabeth answered her

 **"Grover," Mr. D said impatiently, "are you playing or not?"**

 **"Yes, sir!" Grover trembled as he took the fourth chair, though I didn't know why he should be so afraid of a pudgy little man in a tiger-print Hawaiian shirt.**

"I wish he would just a pudgy little man, but he's a pudgy little man with godly powers" Percy said

 **"You do know how to play pinochle?" Mr. D eyed me suspiciously.**

 **"I'm afraid not," I said.**

"What is that anyway?" Alex asked

"I really don't know"

 **"I'm afraid not, sir," he said.**

 **"Sir," I repeated. I was liking the camp director less and less.**

"Doesn't everybody?" Thalia asked

 **"Well," he told me, "it is, along with gladiator fighting and Pac-Man, one of the greatest games ever invented by humans. I would expect all civilized young men to know the rules."**

 **"I'm sure the boy can learn," Chiron said.**

 **"Please," I said, "what is this place? What am I doing here? Mr. Brun—Chiron—why would you go to Yancy Academy just to teach me?"**

"Oh nothing much" his elder daughter told him "You're just a son of a greek god, whose in terrible danger"

 **Mr. D snorted. "I asked the same question. "**

 **The camp director dealt the cards. Grover flinched every time one landed in his pile.**

 **Chiron smiled at me sympathetically, the way he used to in Latin class, as if to let me know that no matter what my average was, I was his star student. He expected me to have the right answer.**

 **"Percy," he said. "Did your mother tell you nothing?**

 **"She said . . . " I remembered her sad eyes, looking out over the sea. "She told me she was afraid to send me here, even though my father had wanted her to. She said that once I was here, I probably couldn't leave. She wanted to keep me close to her. "**

"That was very sweet of her" Hazel said

 **"Typical," Mr. D said. "That's how they usually get killed. Young man, are you bidding or not?"**

 **"What?" I asked.**

 **He explained, impatiently, how you bid in pinochle, and so I did.**

 **"I'm afraid there's too much to tell," Chiron said. "I'm afraid our usual orientation film won't be sufficient. "**

"I told you guys there was an orientation film!" Nico yelled

"Yes yes we believe you" Percy said waving him off

 **"Orientation film?" I asked.**

 **"No," Chiron decided. "Well, Percy. You know your friend Grover is a satyr. You know"—he pointed to the horn in the shoe box—"that you have killed the Minotaur. No small feat, either, lad. What you may not know is that great powers are at work in your life. Gods—the forces you call the Greek gods—are very much alive. "**

"And very much messing with our lives" Jason muttered and everyone agreed

 **I stared at the others around the table.**

 **I waited for somebody to yell, Not! But all I got was Mr. D yelling, "Oh, a royal marriage. Trick! Trick!" He cackled as he tallied up his points.**

 **"Mr. D," Grover asked timidly, "if you're not going to eat it, could I have your Diet Coke can?"**

 **"Eh? Oh, all right. "**

 **Grover bit a huge shard out of the empty aluminum can and chewed it mournfully.**

 **"Wait," I told Chiron. "You're telling me theres such a thing as God. "**

"That's different" Calypso told him

 **"Well, now," Chiron said. "God—capital G, God. That's a different matter altogether. We shant deal with the metaphysical. "**

"Shant? Who still uses that?" Nick asked

 **"Metaphysical? But you were just talking about—"**

 **"Ah, gods, plural, as in, great beings that control the forces of nature and human endeavors: the immortal gods of Olympus. That's a smaller matter. "**

"I don't think they'll like being called a smaller matter" Frank argued

 **"Smaller?"**

 **"Yes, quite. The gods we discussed in Latin class. "**

 **"Zeus," I said. "Hera. Apollo. You mean them. "**

"Didn't they just tell you that names are powerful?" Reyna asked

"He never listens" Annabeth said

"Much like his daughter" Josh said looking at Trina who he still was having a fight with

"Shut up, Grace" she snapped at him glaring at him in the process

"There are actually five people with the last name Grace here" Thalia said winking at Amythyst and high fiving her "be more specific"

"Still a Mclean!" Piper announced

"Not for looooong" Amythyst sing songed

 **And there it was again—distant thunder on a cloudless day.**

 **"Young man," said Mr. D, "I would really be less casual about throwing those names around, if I were you. "**

 **"But they're stories," I said.**

"And right now you're a story" Nico told him

 **"They're—myths, to explain lightning and the seasons and stuff. They're what people believed before there was science. "**

"I wonder what Percy would explain if he ever became a myth?" Hazel asked everyone

 **"Science!" Mr. D scoffed. "And tell me, Perseus Jackson"—I flinched when he said my real name, which I never told anybody—"what will people think of your science two thousand years from now?" Mr. D continued. "Hmm? They will call it primitive mumbo jumbo. That's what. Oh, I love mortals—they have absolutely no sense of perspective. They think they've come so-o-o far. And have they, Chiron? Look at this boy and tell me. "**

 **I wasn't liking Mr. D much, but there was something about the way he called me mortal, as if. . . he wasn't.**

"Because he isn't" Annabeth said

 **It was enough to put a lump in my throat, to suggest why Grover was dutifully minding his cards, chewing his soda can, and keeping his mouth shut.**

 **"Percy," Chiron said, "you may choose to believe or not, but the fact is that immortal means immortal. Can you imagine that for a moment, never dying? Never fading? Existing, just as you are, for all time?"**

"That kind of sounds amazing" Nick said thinking it over

 **I was about to answer, off the top of my head, that it sounded like a pretty good deal, but the tone of Chiron's voice made me hesitate.**

 **"You mean, whether people believed in you or not," I said.**

 **"Exactly," Chiron agreed. "If you were a god, how would you like being called a myth, an old story to explain lightning? What if I told you, Perseus Jackson, that someday people would call you a myth, just created to explain how little boys can get over losing their mothers?"**

"That's mean" Amythyst pouted

 **My heart pounded. He was trying to make me angry for some reason, but I wasn't going to let him. I said, "I wouldn't like it. But I don't believe in gods. "**

"I do now" Percy said

 **"Oh, you'd better," Mr. D murmured. "Before one of them incinerates you. "**

 **Grover said, "P-please, sir. He's just lost his mother. He's in shock. "**

 **"A lucky thing, too," Mr. D grumbled, playing a card. "Bad enough I'm confined to this miserable job, working with boys who don't even believe. "**

 **He waved his hand and a goblet appeared on the table, as if the sunlight had bent, momentarily, and woven the air into glass. The goblet filled itself with red wine.**

 **My jaw dropped, but Chiron hardly looked up.**

 **"Mr. D," he warned, "your restrictions. "**

"What restrictions?" Leo asked

 **Mr. D looked at the wine and feigned surprise.**

 **"Dear me. " He looked at the sky and yelled, "Old habits! Sorry!"**

 **More thunder.**

 **Mr. D waved his hand again, and the wineglass changed into a fresh can of Diet Coke.**

"I want some diet coke right now" Jess said standing up and walking towards the kitchen

Moments later she came back with a tray full of Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi and handed it to everyone. She handed the coke to the Greek demigods, and handed the pepsi to her brother and the Roman demigods, she also Grover an empty soda can.

"Here" she said handing Alex a can of regular coke "I knew you preferred this, than diet coke"

"Thanks" he smiled at her but she quickly looked away and sat down

 **He sighed unhappily, popped the top of the soda, and went back to his card game.**

 **Chiron winked at me. "Mr. D offended his father a while back, took a fancy to a wood nymph who had been declared off-limits. "**

 **"A wood nymph," I repeated, still staring at the Diet Coke can like it was from outer space.**

 **"Yes," Mr. D confessed. "Father loves to punish me. The first time, Prohibition. Ghastly! Absolutely horrid ten years! The second time—well, she really was pretty, and I couldn't stay away—the second time, he sent me here. Half-Blood Hill. Summer camp for brats like you. Be a better influence, he told me. Work with youths rather than tearing them down. Ha. Absolutely unfair. "**

"He sounds like a little kid" Frank said

 **Mr. D sounded about six years old, like a pouting little kid.**

 **"And . . . " I stammered, "your father is . . . "**

 **"Di immortales, Chiron," Mr. D said. "I thought you taught this boy the basics. My father is Zeus, of course. "**

 **I ran through D names from Greek mythology. Wine. The skin of a tiger. The satyrs that all seemed to work here. The way Grover cringed, as if Mr. D were his master.**

 **"You're Dionysus," I said. "The god of wine. "**

"Finally" Thalia rolled her eyes

 **Mr. D rolled his eyes. "What do they say, these days, Grover? Do the children say, Well, duh!?"**

 **"Y-yes, Mr. D. "**

 **"Then, well, duh! Percy Jackson. Did you think I was Aphrodite, perhaps?"**

 **"You're a god. "**

 **"Yes, child. "**

 **"A god. You. "**

"Oh Seaweed brain"

 **He turned to look at me straight on, and I saw a kind of purplish fire in his eyes, a hint that this whiny, plump little man was only showing me the tiniest bit of his true nature. I saw visions of grape vines choking unbelievers to death, drunken warriors insane with battle lust, sailors screaming as their hands turned to flippers, their faces elongating into dolphin snouts. I knew that if I pushed him, Mr. D would show me worse things. He would plant a disease in my brain that would leave me wearing a strait-jacket in a rubber room for the rest of my life.**

 **"Would you like to test me, child?" he said quietly.**

 **"No. No, sir. "**

"Good answer" Annabeth told her boyfriend

 **The fire died a little. He turned back to his card game. "I believe I win. "**

 **"Not quite, Mr. D," Chiron said. He set down a straight, tallied the points, and said, "The game goes to me. "**

 **I thought Mr. D was going to vaporize Chiron right out of his wheelchair, but he just sighed through his nose, as if he were used to being beaten by the Latin teacher. He got up, and Grover rose, too.**

 **"I'm tired," Mr. D said.**

"He really sounds like a little kid" Frank muttered

 **"I believe I'll take a nap before the sing-along tonight. But first, Grover, we need to talk, again, about your less-than-perfect performance on this assignment. "**

 **Grover's face beaded with sweat. "Y-yes, sir. "**

 **Mr. D turned to me. "Cabin eleven, Percy Jackson. And mind your manners. "**

"He never minds his manners" Thalia said rolling her eyes

"Oh like you do, Pinecone face"

 **He swept into the farmhouse, Grover following miserably.**

 **"Will Grover be okay?" I asked Chiron.**

 **Chiron nodded, though he looked a bit troubled. "Old Dionysus isn't really mad. He just hates his job. He's been . . . ah, grounded,**

"Like a teenager who snuck out at night" Rachel said

"My sister knows the feeling" Josh said facing his sister who grumbled under her breath

"You ground me a lot" she told Jason sighing

"You deserve it" her brother argued

"Shut up, Joshy"

 **I guess you would say, and he can't stand waiting another century before he's allowed to go back to Olympus. "**

 **"Mount Olympus," I said. "You're telling me there really is a palace there?"**

 **"Well now, there's Mount Olympus in Greece. And then there's the home of the gods, the convergence point of their powers, which did indeed used to be on Mount Olympus. Its still called Mount Olympus, out of respect to the old ways, but the palace moves, Percy, just as the gods do. "**

 **"You mean the Greek gods are here? Like . . . in America?"**

 **"Well, certainly. The gods move with the heart of the West. "**

 **"The what?"**

 **"Come now, Percy. What you call Western civilization. Do you think its just an abstract concept? No, its a living force. A collective consciousness that has burned bright for thousands of years. The gods are part of it. You might even say they are the source of it, or at least, they are tied so tightly to it that they couldn't possibly fade, not unless all of Western civilization were obliterated. The fire started in Greece. Then, as you well know—or as I hope you know, since you passed my course—the heart of the fire moved to Rome, and so did the gods. Oh, different names, perhaps—Jupiter for Zeus, Venus for Aphrodite, and so on—but the same forces, the same gods. "**

"Not really the same" The roman demigods argued

 **"And then they died. "**

 **"Died? No. Did the West die? The gods simply moved, to Germany, to France, to Spain, for a while. Wherever the flame was brightest, the gods were there. They spent several centuries in England. All you need to do is look at the architecture. People do not forget the gods. Every place they've ruled, for the last three thousand years, you can see them in paintings, in statues, on the most important buildings. And yes, Percy, of course they are now in your United States. Look at your symbol, the eagle of Zeus. Look at the statue of Prometheus in Rockefeller Center, the Greek facades of your government buildings in Washington. I defy you to find any American city where the Olympians are not prominently displayed in multiple places. Like it or not—and believe me, plenty of people weren't very fond of Rome, either—America is now the heart of the flame. It is the great power of the West. And so Olympus is here. And we are here. "**

"And we are all here reading about it" Trina said

 **It was all too much, especially the fact that I seemed to be included in Chirons we, as if I were part of some club.**

"In a sense it kind of is" Annabeth told him

 **"Who are you, Chiron? Who . . . who am I?"**

"You are Perseus Jackson! Our daddy!" Amythyst explained

 **Chiron smiled. He shifted his weight as if he were going to get up out of his wheelchair, but I knew that was impossible. He was paralyzed from the waist down.**

"Nope"

 **"Who are you?" he mused. "Well, that's the question we all want answered, isn't it? But for now, we should get you a bunk in cabin eleven. There will be new friends to meet. And plenty of time for lessons tomorrow. Besides, there will be smores at the campfire tonight, and I simply adore chocolate. "**

"Me too" Amy said dreamily, thinking about chocolate

 **And then he did rise from his wheelchair. But there was something odd about the way he did it. His blanket fell away from his legs, but the legs didn't move. His waist kept getting longer, rising above his belt. At first, I thought he was wearing very long, white velvet underwear, but as he kept rising out of the chair, taller than any man, I realized that the velvet underwear wasn't underwear; it was the front of an animal, muscle and sinew under coarse white fur. And the wheelchair wasn't a chair. It was some kind of container, an enormous box on wheels, and it must've been magic, because there's no way it could've held all of him. A leg came out, long and knobby-kneed, with a huge polished hoof. Then another front leg, then hindquarters, and then the box was empty, nothing but a metal shell with a couple of fake human legs attached. .**

 **I stared at the horse who had just sprung from the wheelchair: a huge white stallion. But where its neck should be was the upper body of my Latin teacher, smoothly grafted to the horses trunk.**

 **"What a relief," the centaur said. "I'd been cooped up in there so long, my fetlocks had fallen asleep. Now, come, Percy Jackson. Lets meet the other campers. "**

"That's the end of it" Frank told everyone "I guess it's time for lunch?"

"Yes it is!" Grover agreed and ran to the kitchen

"Grover and his food" Thalia said shaking her head

"Sometimes I think he loves food more than he loves Juniper" Percy said laughing and followed Grover to the kitchen

 **What do you guys think of this chapter? Like it? Love it? Think it needs improvement? Don't forget to leave a review! And/or follow and fave the story! :) :) :)**

 **Kisses, A**

 **Hahahahaha kidding!**

 **xoxo**

 **Chinfev1203**


	8. Second Day : Second Lunch

**Second day: Lunch Time**

Everyone soon made their way to the kitchen, and they were all surprised to see that instead of Piles and piles of all kinds of food there were piles of cheeseburgers and french fries instead.

"YES!" Thalia screamed and raced to the table and started stuffing her mouth with cheeseburgers

"How about me?!" Piper asked exasperatedly

"This one is labeled tofu," Jason told her and handed her a plate of tofu burgers

Grover, Percy, and Nico sat next to Thalia following her example of stuffing her mouth with cheeseburgers

"Here" Josh approached Trina and gave her a plate with a cheeseburger and stacks of fries at the side

"I can get my own" she glared at him

"Oh come on! You're still mad at me?"

"Gee what do you think?" she gave him another glare and got a different plate

"I'm sorry, Trina"

"Not hearing anything cause apparently, I don't listen"

Josh scratched his head in frustration "Fine. Have it your way"

"Fine!" she screamed and stood up to sit on a chair away from him, while he started to eat the food that was meant to be for his girlfriend.

Piper, Jason, and Annabeth looked at the couple who were fighting then looked at Jess

"They'll get over it," she said biting into her burger "We should just eat and pretend they're not here"

"Do they always fight?" Jason asked

"I don't know if always is the right term" Nick answered

"More like depending on my sisters' mood" Amythyst supplied "She's very moody. Like the sea"

"It's worse when she's on her…." Jess started then stopped and thought about it for a moment "Oh that explains it" she said shrugging

Piper and Annabeth nodded in understanding, they all had days like that.

"What?" Jason asked confused

"Just eat Jason," Piper told him

Meanwhile…..

Calypso was looking at the cheeseburgers and french fries "Never had those before. What are they called?" she asked Leo who was stuffing fries in his mouth

"Cheeseburgers and french fries" Thalia momentarily stopped eating and answered her "You should try it! They're amazing!"

"I can't have cheese I'm lactose intolerant," Frank said looking around the table

"I think this is for you Frank," Hazel told him handing him a plate of burgers with a note that it didn't have cheese on them

"Never having to eat cheese? That's sad. I love cheese" Trina told Frank then continued her conversation with Rachel and Reyna

While…..

Will and Nick were telling Alex about the music room in the house

"There's a music room here?" Alex asked and his brothers nodded

He and Nick had a silent conversation "Oh you are on baby bro!" Alex challenged Nick

"What?" Will asked

"Oh we usually compete with each other for fun" Nick told him "and you Will, will judge us tonight!"

"No thanks, you're both my brothers I don't want to look like I pick favorites" Will told them "Well unless you're competing against Nico, then I'll have to choose him" he said and looked at Nico who was still busy stuffing his mouth with food.

"I can judge" Jess offered

"No way! You'll be biased. Your gonna choose Alex for sure!" Nick exclaimed

"Were broken up, why would I be biased?" she told him taking a sip of her diet coke while Alex looked away from her

"I still don't want you to judge" Nick told his friend

"Why can't everyone judge instead?" Piper suggested "We can all be at the music room tonight"

"I thought we were playing capture the flag tonight?" Jason asked her

"We'll figure it out later" Annabeth said and continued eating

Jason nodded and then looked at his son beside him who was picking at his food, stealing glances at his girlfriend who was still ignoring him.

"You okay bro?" he asked

"Bro? Dude, I'm your son"

"Let me rephrase that," he said "You okay son?"

Josh smiled at him "Yeah. I'll fix this later. She just needs to cool her head"

Everyone continued eating and talking with one another until everyone was done and they decided to go back to reading the book.


	9. Chapter 6: Hazel

**6.** **I BECOME SUPREME LORD OF THE BATHROOM** Hazel read

"Your chapter titles are so weird Percy" she told him

 **Once I got over the fact that my Latin teacher was a horse, we had a nice tour, though I was careful not to walk behind him. I'd done pooper-scooper patrol in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade a few times, and, I'm sorry, I did not trust Chiron's back end the way I trusted his front.**

Everybody couldn't help but laugh at that, and now that they think about it they didn't trust Chiron's back either.

 **We passed the volleyball pit. Several of the campers nudged each other. One pointed to the minotaur horn I was carrying. Another said, "That's him. "**

"I think those were some of my siblings" Will said

 **Most of the campers were older than me. Their satyr friends were bigger than Grover, all of them trotting around in orange CAMP HALF-BLOOD T-shirts, with nothing else to cover their bare shaggy hindquarters. I wasn't normally shy, but the way they stared at me made me uncomfortable. I felt like they were expecting me to do a flip or something.**

"Could you actually do a flip?" Rachel asked

"Never tried"

 **I looked back at the farmhouse. It was a lot bigger than I'd realized—four stories tall, sky blue with white trim, like an upscale seaside resort. I was checking out the brass eagle weather vane on top when something caught my eye, a shadow in the uppermost window of the attic gable. Something had moved the curtain, just for a second, and I got the distinct impression I was being watched.**

"You probably were" Annabeth told him as she remembered the mummy that used to be the oracle

"What's up there?" Jason asked

 **"Whats up there?" I asked Chiron.**

"Oh great" Jason said "Now I think like Percy too"

"Everyone's bound to think like me at some point while reading this book" Percy told him patting his back

 **He looked where I was pointing, and his smile faded. "Just the attic. "**

"What's in the attic?" Leo asked

 **"Somebody lives there?"**

 **"No," he said with finality. "Not a single living thing. "**

"Not living alright" Grover agreed

 **I got the feeling he was being truthful. But I was also sure something had moved that curtain.**

 **"Come along, Percy," Chiron said, his lighthearted tone now a little forced. "Lots to see. "**

 **We walked through the strawberry fields, where campers were picking bushels of berries while a satyr played a tune on a reed pipe**

 **Chiron told me the camp grew a nice crop for export to New York restaurants and Mount Olympus. "It pays our expenses," he explained. "And the strawberries take almost no effort. "**

 **He said Mr. D had this effect on fruit-bearing plants: they just went crazy when he was around. It worked best with wine grapes, but Mr. D was restricted from growing those, so they grew strawberries instead.**

"If it worked on other fruit bearing plants, why not grow other fruit as well?" Reyna asked the Greek demigods

"You know I actually don't know" Grover answered "We've been growing strawberries for as long as I can remember"

"You make it sound like your as old as Chiron, Grover" Thalia said

 **I watched the satyr playing his pipe. His music was causing lines of bugs to leave the strawberry patch in every direction, like refugees fleeing a fire. I wondered if Grover could work that kind of magic with music. I wondered if he was still inside the farmhouse, getting chewed out by Mr. D.**

 **"Grover wont get in too much trouble, will he?" I asked Chiron. "I mean . . . he was a good protector. Really. "**

"You really are G man" Percy told him

"Thanks, Perce"

 **Chiron sighed. He shed his tweed jacket and draped it over his horses back like a saddle. "Grover has big dreams, Percy.**

"You achieved your dreams and proved them all wrong, Grover" Thalia smiled at him

 **Perhaps bigger than are reasonable. To reach his goal, he must first demonstrate great courage by succeeding as a keeper, finding a new camper and bringing him safely to Half-Blood Hill. "**

 **"But he did that!"**

 **"I might agree with you," Chiron said. "But it is not my place to judge. Dionysus and the Council of Cloven Elders must decide. I'm afraid they might not see this assignment as a success. After all, Grover lost you in New York. Then there's the unfortunate . . . ah . . . fate of your mother. And the fact that Grover was unconscious when you dragged him over the property line. The council might question whether this shows any courage on Grover's part."**

"But that was all daddy's fault" Amythyst said and Grover looked at her not knowing what to say. Percy agreed with her though, if hadn't left Grover he wouldn't have lost Percy in New York.

 **I wanted to protest. None of what happened was Grover's fault. I also felt really, really guilty. If I hadn't given Grover the slip at the bus station, he might not have gotten in trouble.**

 **"He'll get a second chance, won't he?"**

"That was my second chance" Grover muttered

"What happened the first time?" Calypso asked

"It will be explained soon, I think" he answered

 **Chiron winced. "I'm afraid that was Grover's second chance, Percy. The council was not anxious to give him another, either, after what happened the first time, five years ago. Olympus knows, I advised him to wait longer before trying again. He's still so small for his age. . . . "**

 **"How old is he?"**

 **"Oh, twenty-eight. "**

"We mature half as fast as humans" Grover explained

 **"What! And he's in sixth grade?"**

 **"Satyrs mature half as fast as humans, Percy. Grover has been the equivalent of a middle school student for the past six years. "**

"That's terrible!" Leo exclaimed

 **"That's horrible. "**

 **"Quite," Chiron agreed. "At any rate, Grover is a late bloomer, even by satyr standards, and not yet very accomplished at woodland magic. Alas, he was anxious to pursue his dream. Perhaps now he will find some other career. . . . "**

"You proved all of them wrong, Grover" Annabeth beamed at him

 **"That's not fair," I said. "What happened the first time? Was it really so bad?"**

 **Chiron looked away quickly. "Lets move along, shall we?"**

 **But I wasn't quite ready to let the subject drop. Something had occurred to me when Chiron talked about my mothers fate, as if he were intentionally avoiding the word death. The beginning of an idea—a tiny, hopeful fire—started forming in my mind.**

"Oh no" Trina muttered

 **"Chiron," I said. "If the gods and Olympus and all that are real . . . "**

 **"Yes, child?"**

 **"Does that mean the Underworld is real, too?"**

"What are you thinking?" Reyna asked

 **Chirons expression darkened.**

 **"Yes, child. " He paused, as if choosing his words carefully. "There is a place where spirits go after death. But for now . . . until we know more . . . I would urge you to put that out of your mind. "**

 **"What do you mean, until we know more?"**

 **"Come, Percy. Let's see the woods. ". . . .**

"He just loves changing the subject" Rachel said

 **As we got closer, I realized how huge the forest was. It took up at least a quarter of the valley, with trees so tall and thick, you could imagine nobody had been in there since the Native Americans.**

 **Chiron said, "The woods are stocked, if you care to try your luck, but go armed. "**

 **"Stocked with what?" I asked. "Armed with what?"**

"He should learn to explain things more" Jess said

 **"You'll see. Capture the flag is Friday night. Do you have your own sword and shield?"**

"He just got there how would he have his own sword and shield?" Alex exclaimed

 **"My own—?"**

 **"No," Chiron said. "I don't suppose you do. I think a size five will do. I'll visit the armory later. "**

 **I wanted to ask what kind of summer camp had an armory, but there was too much else to think about, so the tour continued. We saw the archery range, the canoeing lake, the stables (which Chiron didn't seem to like very much),**

Everyone laughed

 **the javelin range, the sing-along amphitheater, and the arena where Chiron said they held sword and spear fights.**

 **"Sword and spear fights?" I asked.**

 **"Cabin challenges and all that," he explained. "Not lethal. Usually. Oh, yes, and there's the mess hall. "**

 **Chiron pointed to an outdoor pavilion framed in white Grecian columns on a hill overlooking the sea. There were a dozen stone picnic tables. No roof. No walls.**

 **"What do you do when it rains?" I asked.**

 **Chiron looked at me as if I'd gone a little weird. "We still have to eat, don't we?" I decided to drop the subject.**

"Couldn't he just have explained how the camp was protected?" Trina said "it would have been better for everybody"

 **Finally, he showed me the cabins. There were twelve of them,**

"Twelve?" Leo asked "I'm pretty sure the camp has more than that" Piper, Jason and even the Roman demigods agreed with Leo, when they had been at Camp Half Blood there were more than twelve cabins. But Percy and Annabeth's daughters knew of the cabins history, and that those new cabins were designed by their mother.

"That was before we had the other cabins" Annabeth explained

 **nestled in the woods by the lake. They were arranged in a U, with two at the base and five in a row on either side. And they were without doubt the most bizarre collection of buildings I'd ever seen.**

"Everything's bizarre in the demigod world" Jess muttered

 **Except for the fact that each had a large brass number above the door (odds on the left side, evens on the right), they looked absolutely nothing alike. Number nine had smokestacks, like a tiny factory.**

Leo grinned remembering his cabin

 **Number four had tomato vines on the walls and a roof made out of real grass.**

 **Seven seemed to be made of solid gold, which gleamed so much in the sunlight it was almost impossible to look at.**

The three son's of Apollo grinned at each other and gave each other a high five

"Their smiles are hard to look at" Leo muttered

 **They all faced a commons area about the size of a soccer field, dotted with Greek statues, fountains, flower beds, and a couple of basketball hoops (which were more my speed).**

 **In the center of the field was a huge stone-lined fire pit. Even though it was a warm afternoon, the hearth smoldered. A girl about nine years old was tending the flames, poking the coals with a stick.**

'Hestia' Percy and Nico thought

 **The pair of cabins at the head of the field, numbers one and two, looked like his-and-hers mausoleums, big white marble boxes with heavy columns in front. Cabin one was the biggest and bulkiest of the twelve. Its polished bronze doors shimmered like a hologram, so that from different angles lightning bolts seemed to streak across them.**

'Because Zeus is dramatic like that' Thalia thought to herself

 **Cabin two was more graceful somehow, with slimmer columns garlanded with pomegranates and flowers. The walls were carved with images of peacocks.**

Thalia and Annabeth frowned at the mention of Hera's cabin

 **"Zeus and Hera?" I guessed.**

 **"Correct," Chiron said.**

 **"Their cabins look empty. "**

"Not anymore!" Jess announced "For Cabin 1 anyway"

"You two stay in Cabin 1?" Thalia asked

The twins nodded

 **"Several of the cabins are. That's true. No one ever stays in one or two. "**

 **Okay. So each cabin had a different god, like a mascot.**

"Now that you've mentioned it" Josh started "Yeah kind of like a mascot"

 **Twelve cabins for the twelve Olympians. But why would some be empty?**

 **I stopped in front of the first cabin on the left, cabin three.**

"It's like you knew it was your cabin" Trina told her father

"Where do you two stay at camp?" he asked his daughters

"Cabin three" Amy smiled

"Why not Cabin six?" Annabeth asked

"Ask your future self" Trina told her "Your the one who told us to stay at Cabin three"

 **It wasn't high and mighty like cabin one, but long and low and solid. The outer walls were of rough gray stone studded with pieces of seashell and coral, as if the slabs had been hewn straight from the bottom of the ocean floor. I peeked inside the open doorway and Chiron said, "Oh, I wouldn't do that!"**

 **Before he could pull me back, I caught the salty scent of the interior, like the wind on the shore at Montauk. The interior walls glowed like abalone. There were six empty bunk beds with silk sheets turned down. But there was no sign anyone had ever slept there. The place felt so sad and lonely, I was glad when Chiron put his hand on my shoulder and said, "Come along, Percy. "**

"Don't worry, it's not sad and lonely anymore" Amythyst assured him

 **Most of the other cabins were crowded with campers.**

 **Number five was bright red—a real nasty paint job, as if the color had been splashed on with buckets and fists.**

"They probably were" muttered Grover

 **The roof was lined with barbed wire. A stuffed wild boars head hung over the doorway, and its eyes seemed to follow me.**

"That boar still seriously creeps me out" Jess said

"Yet one camper that live there don't creep you out" Josh argued

"Josh, they're people to you know" his sister responded trying to change the subject, she knew where this topic was heading

"You know what I mean"

"What does he mean?" Leo asked "I'm confused"

"She dated a son of Ares, on and off for a summer" Nick explained and Alex frowned at the mention of his ex-girlfriends, ex-boyfriend.

"That relationship was seriously confusing" Trina told her

"Oh shut up, the three of you! I was thirteen!" she crossed her arms glaring at her brother and friends

"I let you date at thirteen?!" Jason asked

"At eleven actually" Josh told him "trust me, it gave you a headache"

"Oh just read please" Jess begged Hazel who immediately started reading

 **Inside I could see a bunch of mean-looking kids, both girls and boys, arm wrestling and arguing with each other while rock music blared. The loudest was a girl maybe thirteen or fourteen. She wore a size XXXL CAMP HALF-BLOOD T-shirt under a camouflage jacket. She zeroed in on me and gave me an evil sneer. She reminded me of Nancy Bobofit, though the camper girl was much bigger and tougher looking, and her hair was long and stringy, and brown instead of red.**

'Clarisse' the campers thought

 **I kept walking, trying to stay clear of Chirons hooves. "We haven't seen any other centaurs," I observed.**

 **"No," said Chiron sadly. "My kinsmen are a wild and barbaric folk, I'm afraid. You might encounter them in the wilderness, or at major sporting events. But you wont see any here."**

"I love those ponies" Alex exclaimed

 **"You said your name was Chiron. Are you really . . . "**

 **He smiled down at me. "The Chiron from the stories? Trainer of Hercules and all that? Yes, Percy, I am. "**

 **"But, shouldn't you be dead?"**

 **Chiron paused, as if the question intrigued him. "I honestly don't know about should be. The truth is, I can't be dead. You see, eons ago the gods granted my wish. I could continue the work I loved. I could be a teacher of heroes as long as humanity needed me. I gained much from that wish . . . and I gave up much. But I'm still here, so I can only assume I'm still needed. "**

The Greek campers thought about Chiron, and yes they still need him. They will continue to need him for eons, he is the best teacher a demigod could ever ask for.

 **I thought about being a teacher for three thousand years. It wouldn't have made my Top Ten Things to Wish For list.**

 **"Doesn't it ever get boring?"**

 **"No, no," he said. "Horribly depressing, at times, but never boring. "**

 **"Why depressing?"**

 **Chiron seemed to turn hard of hearing again.**

 **"Oh, look," he said. "Annabeth is waiting for us. "**

"Way to change the subject, Chiron" Thalia muttered

 **The blond girl I'd met at the Big House was reading a book in front of the last cabin on the left, number eleven.**

"Don't you ever get tiered of reading, Annabeth?" Leo asked

"No"

 **When we reached her, she looked me over critically, like she was still thinking about how much I drooled.**

"I was actually" Annabeth told him laughing and Percy placed his arm around her

 **I tried to see what she was reading, but I couldn't make out the title. I thought my dyslexia was acting up. Then I realized the title wasn't even English. The letters looked Greek to me. I mean, literally Greek. There were pictures of temples and statues and different kinds of columns, like those in an architecture book.**

"Because it was an architecture book, Seaweed brain" She said kissing his cheek and Percy hugged her tighter

Their older daughter looked at them in awe, and glanced at her boyfriend who she was still having a fight with.

 **"Annabeth," Chiron said, "I have masters archery class at noon. Would you take Percy from here?"**

 **"Yes, sir. "**

 **"Cabin eleven," Chiron told me, gesturing toward the doorway. "Make yourself at home. "**

 **Out of all the cabins, eleven looked the most like a regular old summer camp cabin, with the emphasis on old. The threshold was worn down, the brown paint peeling. Over the doorway was one of those doctors symbols, a winged pole with two snakes wrapped around it. What did they call it. . . ? A caduceus.**

 **Inside, it was packed with people, both boys and girls, way more than the number of bunk beds. Sleeping bags were spread all over on the floor. It looked like a gym where the Red Cross had set up an evacuation center.**

"The cabins still packed with people, but it doesn't look like an evacuation center anymore" Josh told the campers "and all of them are children of Hermes"

 **Chiron didn't go in. The door was too low for him. But when the campers saw him they all stood and bowed respectfully.**

 **"Well, then," Chiron said. "Good luck, Percy. I'll see you at dinner. "**

 **He galloped away toward the archery range.**

 **I stood in the doorway, looking at the kids. They weren't bowing anymore.**

"Why would they even bow to you, Kelp head?"

 **They were staring at me, sizing me up. I knew this routine. I'd gone through it at enough schools.**

Leo and Piper nodded knowing the feeling of having to go through from one school to another.

 **"Well?" Annabeth prompted. "Go on. "**

 **So naturally I tripped coming in the door and made a total fool of myself. There were some snickers from the campers, but none of them said anything.**

The room erupted with laughter, while Percy hid behind Annabeth's hair who was trying her best not to laugh

 **Annabeth announced, "Percy Jackson, meet cabin eleven.**

 **"Regular or undetermined?" somebody asked.**

 **I didn't know what to say, but Annabeth said, "Undetermined. "**

 **Everybody groaned.**

 **A guy who was a little older than the rest came forward. "Now, now, campers. That's what were here for. Welcome, Percy. You can have that spot on the floor, right over there. "**

 **The guy was about nineteen, and he looked pretty cool. He was tall and muscular, with short-cropped sandy hair and a friendly smile. He wore an orange tank top, cutoffs, sandals, and a leather necklace with five different-colored clay beads. The only thing unsettling about his appearance was a thick white scar that ran from just beneath his right eye to his jaw, like an old knife slash.**

Everyone who knew Luke went really silent, and Percy tightened his grip on Annabeth

 **"This is Luke," Annabeth said, and her voice sounded different somehow. I glanced over and could've sworn she was blushing.**

Everyone looked at Annabeth, who groaned.

"WHAT?" Amythyst asked standing up and looking at her mother "You were blushing!"

"Sit down, Amy" her sister told her

"Bu..bu..but"

"Later" her sister told her again

 **She saw me looking, and her expression hardened again. "He's your counselor for now. "**

 **"For now?" I asked.**

 **"You're undetermined," Luke explained patiently. "They don't know what cabin to put you in, so you're here. Cabin eleven takes all newcomers, all visitors. Naturally, we would. Hermes, our patron, is the god of travelers. "**

 **I looked at the tiny section of floor they'd given me. I had nothing to put there to mark it as my own, no luggage, no clothes, no sleeping bag. Just the Minotaur's horn. I thought about setting that down, but then I remembered that Hermes was also the god of thieves.**

 **I looked around at the campers faces, some sullen and suspicious, some grinning stupidly, some eyeing me as if they were waiting for a chance to pick my pockets.**

 **"How long will I be here?" I asked.**

 **"Good question," Luke said. "Until you're determined. "**

 **"How long will that take?"**

 **The campers all laughed.**

"It doesn't take long now" Trina told her dad

'Good' Percy thought 'that gods are keeping their promise'

 **"Come on," Annabeth told me. "I'll show you the volleyball court. "**

 **"I've already seen it. "**

 **"Come on. " She grabbed my wrist and dragged me outside.**

"Eager to leave, Annabeth?" Leo teased her

 **I could hear the kids of cabin eleven laughing behind me.**

"Or at Annabeth" Leo said

"What?" she asked

"If Percy saw you blushing what are the odds that the other kids did too" he explained

"Please read, Hazel"

 **When we were a few feet away, Annabeth said, "Jackson, you have to do better than that."**

 **"What?"**

 **She rolled her eyes and mumbled under her breath, "I can't believe I thought you were the one. "**

"He is the one!" her daughters shouted

"Alright alright" Annabeth waved them off "Don't shout at me, I'm your mother"

The two girls looked at each other and giggled

 **"Whats your problem?" I was getting angry now.**

"First day of meeting each other and your already fighting" Piper said

"Ohh young love" Piper's daughter cooed

 **"All I know is, I kill some bull guy—"**

 **"Don't talk like that!" Annabeth told me. "You know how many kids at this camp wish they'd had your chance?"**

"Not that many, Annabeth" Grover told her

 **"To get killed?"**

 **"To fight the Minotaur! What do you think we train for?"**

"We train to live" Nick told her

 **I shook my head. "Look, if the thing I fought really was the Minotaur, the same one in the stories . . . "**

 **"Yes. "**

 **"Then there's only one. "**

Annabeth rolled her eyes at her boyfriend

 **"Yes. "**

 **"And he died, like, a gajillion years ago, right? Theseus killed him in the labyrinth. So . . . "**

 **"Monsters don't die, Percy. They can be killed. But they don't die. "**

"That doesn't really make any sense, Annabeth" Jason told her "Especially to someone who's just starting to get to know the demigod world"

 **"Oh, thanks. That clears it up. "**

 **"They don't have souls, like you and me. You can dispel them for a while, maybe even for a whole lifetime if you're lucky. But they are primal forces. Chiron calls them archetypes. Eventually, they re-form. "**

 **I thought about Mrs. Dodds. "You mean if I killed one, accidentally, with a sword—"**

 **"The Fur . . . I mean, your math teacher. That's right. She's still out there. You just made her very, very mad. "**

"And very very wanting to kill you" Nico told Percy

 **"How did you know about Mrs. Dodds?"**

 **"You talk in your sleep. "**

"He still does" said his daughters

"Trina does too, sometimes when she's really tiered" Jess told everyone

 **"You almost called her something. A Fury? They're Hades torturers, right?"**

 **Annabeth glanced nervously at the ground, as if she expected it to open up and swallow her".**

"Would it actually?" Will asked Nico

"Maybe"

 **"You shouldn't call them by name, even here. We call them the Kindly Ones, if we have to speak of them at all. "**

"They're not kind at all" Thalia said

 **"Look, is there anything we can say without it thundering?" I sounded whiny,**

"My sister's whiny" Trina teased the little girl

 **even to myself, but right then I didn't care. "Why do I have to stay in cabin eleven, anyway? Why is everybody so crowded together? There are plenty of empty bunks right over there."**

 **I pointed to the first few cabins, and Annabeth turned pale. "You don't just choose a cabin, Percy. It depends on who your parents are. Or . . . your parent. "**

 **She stared at me, waiting for me to get it.**

"Which he didn't" Annabeth rolled her eyes and Percy kissed her cheek and rested his chin on her shoulder

 **"My mom is Sally Jackson," I said. "She works at the candy store in Grand Central Station. At least, she used to. "**

 **"I'm sorry about your mom, Percy. But that's not what I mean. I'm talking about your other parent. Your dad. "**

 **"He's dead. I never knew him. "**

 **Annabeth sighed. Clearly, she'd had this conversation before with other kids. "Your father's not dead, Percy. "**

 **"How can you say that? You know him?"**

 **"No, of course not. "**

 **"Then how can you say—"**

 **"Because I know you. You wouldn't be here if you weren't one of us. "**

"It really does sound like we're members of some club" Piper said

 **"You don't know anything about me. "**

"She does now" Grover told Percy "I'm pretty sure she knows everything now"

 **"No?" She raised an eyebrow. "I bet you moved around from school to school. I bet you were kicked out of a lot of them. "**

 **"How—"**

 **"Diagnosed with dyslexia. Probably ADHD, too. "**

 **I tried to swallow my embarrassment. "What does that have to do with anything?"**

"It has to do with everything, when you're a demigod" Thalia said

 **"Taken together, its almost a sure sign. The letters float off the page when you read, right? That's because your mind is hardwired for ancient Greek. And the ADHD—you're impulsive, can't sit still in the classroom. That's your battlefield reflexes. In a real fight, they'd keep you alive. As for the attention problems, that's because you see too much, Percy, not too little. Your senses are better than a regular mortals. Of course the teachers want you medicated. Most of them are monsters. They don't want you seeing them for what they are. "**

 **"You sound like . . . you went through the same thing?"**

"Of course she did! You're both demigods" Reyna told Percy

 **"Most of the kids here did. If you weren't like us, you couldn't have survived the Minotaur, much less the ambrosia and nectar. "**

 **"Ambrosia and nectar. "**

 **"The food and drink we were giving you to make you better. That stuff would've killed a normal kid. It would've turned your blood to fire and your bones to sand and you'd be dead. Face it. You're a half-blood. "**

"What if Rachel tried it?" Piper asked "She's a mortal but also the oracle, would that work?"

"I don't want to risk it, Piper" Rachel answered her

 **A half-blood.**

 **I was reeling with so many questions I didn't know where to start.**

 **Then a husky voice yelled, "Well! A newbie!"**

 **I looked over. The big girl from the ugly red cabin was sauntering toward us. She had three other girls behind her, all big and ugly and mean looking like her, all wearing camo jackets.**

 **"Clarisse," Annabeth sighed. "Why don't you go polish your spear or something?"**

 **"Sure, Miss Princess," the big girl said. "So I can run you through with it Friday night. "**

 **"** **Erre es korakas!" Annabeth said, which I somehow understood was Greek for Go to the crows! though I had a feeling it was a worse curse than it sounded.**

"It is" She told him

 **"You don't stand a chance. "**

 **"Well pulverize you," Clarisse said, but her eye twitched. Perhaps she wasn't sure she could follow through on the threat. She turned toward me. "Who's this little runt?"**

"She can't pulverize me" Annabeth said confidently

 **"Percy Jackson," Annabeth said, "meet Clarisse, Daughter of Ares."**

 **I blinked. "Like . . . the war god?"**

 **Clarisse sneered. "You got a problem with that?"**

 **"No," I said, recovering my wits. "It explains the bad smell. "**

"Hey!" Frank yelled

"Except for you, Frank" Percy told him laughing

 **Clarisse growled. "We got an initiation ceremony for newbies, Prissy. "**

"Why didn't we get an initiation?" Leo asked Percy

"Probably because of what will happen next, you'll see" he said grinning remembering the event

 **"Percy. "**

 **"Whatever. Come on, I'll show you."**

 **"Clarisse—" Annabeth tried to say.**

 **"Stay out of it, wise girl. "**

"Wise girl? She called you wise girl first?!" Everyone asked

"Hmm, I guess she did" Annabeth answered

 **Annabeth looked pained, but she did stay out of it, and I didn't really want her help. I was the new kid. I had to earn my own rep.**

"You have quiet a rep now actually" Piper told him

 **I handed Annabeth my minotaur horn and got ready to fight, but before I knew it, Clarisse had me by the neck and was dragging me toward a cinder-block building that I knew immediately was the bathroom.**

 **I was kicking and punching. I'd been in plenty of fights before, but this big girl Clarisse had hands like iron. She dragged me into the girls bathroom. There was a line of toilets on one side and a line of shower stalls down the other. It smelled just like any public bathroom, and I was thinking—as much as I could think with Clarisse ripping my hair out—that if this place belonged to the gods, they should've been able to afford classier johns.**

"They're much nicer now" Trina said "Mom designed new bathrooms"

 **Clarisse's friends were all laughing, and I was trying to find the strength I'd used to fight the Minotaur, but it just wasn't there.**

 **"Like he's Big Three material," Clarisse said as she pushed me toward one of the toilets. "Yeah, right. Minotaur probably fell over laughing, he was so stupid looking. "**

 **Her friends snickered.**

 **Annabeth stood in the corner, watching through her fingers.**

"I was not!"

"Yes you were" Percy told her sticking out his tongue

 **Clarisse bent me over on my knees and started pushing my head toward the toilet bowl. It reeked like rusted pipes and, well, like what goes into toilets.**

"Gross"

 **I strained to keep my head up. I was looking at the scummy water, thinking, I will not go into that. I wont.**

 **Then something happened. I felt a tug in the pit of my stomach.**

"Uh oh" Hazel said

As everyone leaned closer to the book in anticipation of what will happen next.

 **I heard the plumbing rumble, the pipes shudder. Clarisses grip on my hair loosened. Water shot out of the toilet, making an arc straight over my head, and the next thing I knew, I was sprawled on the bathroom tiles with Clarisse screaming behind me.**

 **I turned just as water blasted out of the toilet again, hitting Clarisse straight in the face so hard it pushed her down onto her butt. The water stayed on her like the spray from a fire hose, pushing her backward into a shower stall.**

 **She struggled, gasping, and her friends started coming toward her. But then the other toilets exploded, too, and six more streams of toilet water blasted them back. The showers acted up, too, and together all the fixtures sprayed the camouflage girls right out of the bathroom, spinning them around like pieces of garbage being washed away.**

"THAT IS SO AWESOME!" Leo, Alex and Nick screamed

Everyone who didn't know about this were all shocked and were all laughing hysterically.

 **As soon as they were out the door, I felt the tug in my gut lessen, and the water shut off as quickly as it had started.**

 **The entire bathroom was flooded. Annabeth hadn't been spared.**

"ohmygoodnes" everyone laughed harder and Annabeth glared at them to stop.

 **She was dripping wet, but she hadn't been pushed out the door. She was standing in exactly the same place, staring at me in shock.**

 **I looked down and realized I was sitting in the only dry spot in the whole room. There was a circle of dry floor around me. I didn't have one drop of water on my clothes. Nothing.**

 **I stood up, my legs shaky.**

 **Annabeth said, "How did you . . . "**

 **"I don't know. "**

 **We walked to the door. Outside, Clarisse and her friends were sprawled in the mud, and a bunch of other campers had gathered around to gawk.**

"I was one of those campers" Will told everyone

 **Clarisse's hair was flattened across her face. Her camouflage jacket was sopping and she smelled like sewage. She gave me a look of absolute hatred. "You are dead, new boy. You are totally dead. "**

 **I probably should have let it go, but I said, "You want to gargle with toilet water again, Clarisse? Close your mouth. "**

Everyone couldn't help but laugh again, they were all pretty much rolling on the floor laughing. Percy can really be sassy at times.

 **Her friends had to hold her back. They dragged her toward cabin five, while the other campers made way to avoid her flailing feet.**

 **Annabeth stared at me. I couldn't tell whether she was just grossed out or angry at me for dousing her.**

"A little bit of both actually" she told him

"Sorry"

 **"What?" I demanded. "What are you thinking?"**

 **"I'm thinking," she said, "that I want you on my team for capture the flag. "**

"That's the end of the chapter, your turn, Nico" she said as she handed the book to her brother. 


	10. Chapter 7: Nico

**7.** **MY DINNER GOES UP IN SMOKE** Nico read

 **Word of the bathroom incident spread immediately. Wherever I went, campers pointed at me and murmured something about toilet water. Or maybe they were just staring at Annabeth, who was still pretty much dripping wet.**

"Or both"

"Why didn't you just go back to your cabin and change?" Trina asked her mother

Annabeth went silent she didn't know why her twelve year old self didn't think of that.

 **She showed me a few more places: the metal shop (where kids were forging their own swords),**

Leo sighed he had the sudden urge to forge a sword, or a dagger, or something

 **the arts-and-crafts room (where satyrs were sandblasting a giant marble statue of a goat-man),**

Rachel smiled and was thinking of a painting that she would do later before she went to bed.

 **and the climbing wall, which actually consisted of two facing walls that shook violently, dropped boulders, sprayed lava, and clashed together if you didn't get to the top fast enough.**

"gods I hate that" Trina said

"Why?" asked Annabeth

"She's deathly afraid of heights" Amythyst answered for her sister

Thalia could relate to her, she too was afraid of heights

 **Finally we returned to the canoeing lake, where the trail led back to the cabins.**

The Jackson's smiled, they all loved the canoeing lake.

 **"I've got training to do," Annabeth said flatly. "Dinners at seven-thirty. Just follow your cabin to the mess hall. "**

 **"Annabeth, I'm sorry about the toilets. "**

 **"Whatever. "**

"Somebody's in a bad mood" Frank commented

 **"It wasn't my fault. "**

"It kind of was"

 **She looked at me skeptically, and I realized it was my fault. I'd made water shoot out of the bathroom fixtures. I didn't understand how. But the toilets had responded to me. I had become one with the plumbing.**

"Do you become one with the plumbing?" Frank asked Percy's daughters

"Yeah and I was the victim" Nick grumbled before the two could answer

"I said I was sorry" Trina apologized "But you deserved it"

"At least it wasn't toilet water" Jess told him

"What was it?" Percy asked

"Oh, she just made the kitchen faucet explode on my face" Nick answered

"What did you do?" Grover asked him

"I sort of…. placed a rubber spider on her book" Nick answered moving away from Trina, afraid he'd be a victim of the plumbing again.

Annabeth glared at him "You really did deserve it"

Percy shook his head, smiled at Nick and kissed Annabeth's cheek and hugged her tighter

 **"You need to talk to the Oracle," Annabeth said.**

"To Rachel?" Hazel asked

"No the one before me"

 **"Who?"**

 **"Not who. What. The Oracle. I'll ask Chiron. "**

"Annabeth, I think oracles are 'who'" Piper told her friend

"It'll be explained later"

"Can't you just say it now?"

"No"

 **I stared into the lake, wishing somebody would give me a straight answer for once.**

 **I wasn't expecting anybody to be looking back at me from the bottom, so my heart skipped a beat when I noticed two teenage girls sitting cross-legged at the base of the pier, about twenty feet below. They wore blue jeans and shimmering green T-shirts, and their brown hair floated loose around their shoulders as minnows darted in and out. They smiled and waved as if I were a long-lost friend.**

"In a way, you are"

 **I didn't know what else to do. I waved back.**

 **"Don't encourage them," Annabeth warned. "Naiads are terrible flirts. "**

"Aww Annie, Jealous already?" Thalia teased

"Shut up, Thalia"

 **"Naiads," I repeated, feeling completely overwhelmed. "That's it. I want to go home now."**

 **Annabeth frowned. "Don't you get it, Percy? You are home. This is the only safe place on earth for kids like us. "**

 **"You mean, mentally disturbed kids?"**

"Ouch, Percy" Leo said faking hurt "That really hurts, you know"

 **"I mean not human.**

"Do we look like monsters to you, Annabeth?" Thalia asked her friend teasingly

 **Not totally human, anyway. Half-human. "**

 **"Half-human and half-what?"**

 **"I think you know. "**

"Couldn't you just have answered him? You're just like Chiron!" Piper exclaimed

 **I didn't want to admit it, but I was afraid I did. I felt a tingling in my limbs, a sensation I sometimes felt when my mom talked about my dad.**

 **"God," I said. "Half-god. "**

 **Annabeth nodded. "Your father isn't dead, Percy. He's one of the Olympians. "**

 **"That's . . . crazy. "**

"Crazy but we've gotten used to it already"

 **"Is it? What's the most common thing gods did in the old stories? They ran around falling in love with humans and having kids with them. Do you think they've changed their habits in the last few millennia?"**

"Not at all" All the demigods chorused

 **"But those are just—" I almost said myths again. Then I remembered Chiron's warning that in two thousand years, I might be considered a myth. "But if all the kids here are half-gods—"**

 **"Demigods," Annabeth said. "That's the official term. Or half-bloods. "**

 **"Then who's your dad?"**

"Dad? Can't it be the mother? That is so sexist, Perseus!" Trina exclaimed shaking her head at her father

"Like mother, Like daughter" Percy said looking back and forth between Annabeth, and their daughter.

 **Her hands tightened around the pier railing. I got the feeling I'd just trespassed on a sensitive subject.**

 **"My dad is a professor at West Point," she said. "I haven't seen him since I was very small. He teaches American history. "**

 **"He's human. "**

 **"What? You assume it has to be a male god who finds a human female attractive? How sexist is that?"**

"Percy was right" Jason said "Like mother, like daughter"

 **"Who's your mom, then?"**

 **"Cabin six. "**

 **"Meaning?"**

 **Annabeth straightened. "Athena. Goddess of wisdom and battle. "**

 **Okay, I thought. Why not?**

"What does that mean?" Annabeth asked but instead of answering Percy kissed her instead

 **"And my dad?"**

 **"Undetermined," Annabeth said, "like I told you before. Nobody knows. "**

"Yeah" Percy said laughing "Nobody definitely knows" Annabeth started laughing as well

"What?" Everyone asked

"Inside joke. Sorry" Percy told them

 **"Except my mother. She knew. "**

"She did"

 **"Maybe not, Percy. Gods don't always reveal their identities. "**

"He did"

 **"My dad would have. He loved her. "**

 **Annabeth gave me a cautious look. She didn't want to burst my bubble.**

"And yet another water reference"

 **"Maybe you're right. Maybe he'll send a sign. That's the only way to know for sure: your father has to send you a sign claiming you as his son. Sometimes it happens.**

 **"You mean sometimes it doesn't?"**

"Now it happens all the time" the futures told them and Percy smiled

 **Annabeth ran her palm along the rail. "The gods are busy. They have a lot of kids**

"A lot" Alex said

 **and they don't always . . . Well, sometimes they don't care about us, Percy. They ignore us."**

The demigods all sighed

 **I thought about some of the kids I'd seen in the Hermes cabin, teenagers who looked sullen and depressed, as if they were waiting for a call that would never come. I'd known kid's like that at Yancy Academy, shuffled off to boarding school by rich parents who didn't have the time to deal with them.**

Piper sighed she knew all too well how that felt like. Jason noticed her sad expression and placed his arms around her, and kissed her on the cheek, making her smile.

Jess, who saw the whole exchange smiled and nudge her brother to look at their parents, and he smiled as well. She wished she had the same kind of love her parents had, at a time she thought she did, but it was gone now. Just the thought of it was making her sad again. While Josh was thinking how he could apologize to his girlfriend later at dinner.

Piper and Jason seemed to notice their twins sudden sad mood, and Piper whispered to Jason that they would talk to them later.

 **But gods should behave better.**

"Yes they should"

 **"So I'm stuck here," I said. "That's it? For the rest of my life?"**

 **"It depends," Annabeth said. "Some campers only stay the summer. If you're a child of Aphrodite or Demeter, you're probably not a real powerful force.**

"HEY!" the daughter of Aphrodite yelled

"Sorry" her blond friend apologized

 **The monsters might ignore you, so you can get by with a few months of summer training and live in the mortal world the rest of the year. But for some of us, its too dangerous to leave. Were year-rounders. In the mortal world, we attract monsters. They sense us. They come to challenge us. Most of the time, they'll ignore us until were old enough to cause trouble—about ten or eleven years old, but after that, most demigods either make their way here, or they get killed off. A few manage to survive in the outside world and become famous. Believe me, if I told you the names, you'd know them. Some don't even realize they're demigods. But very, very few are like that. "**

"How many of our siblings are famous?" Nick asked Will

"Hmmm" Will thought about it 'We'll figure it out later"

 **"So monsters can't get in here?"**

 **Annabeth shook her head. "Not unless they're intentionally stocked in the woods or specially summoned by somebody on the inside. "**

"Who in their right mind would summon a monster to camp?" Leo asked

 **"Why would anybody want to summon a monster?"**

"Exactly!"

 **"Practice fights. Practical jokes. "**

"That is too much for a practical joke" Hazel muttered

 **"Practical jokes?"**

 **"The point is, the borders are sealed to keep mortals and monsters out. From the outside, mortals look into the valley and see nothing unusual, just a strawberry farm. "**

 **"So . . . you're a year-rounder?"**

 **Annabeth nodded. From under the collar of her T-shirt she pulled a leather necklace with five clay beads of different colors. It was just like Luke's, except Annabeth's also had a big gold ring strung on it, like a college ring.**

 **"I've been here since I was seven," she said.**

"I didn't know you were at camp at that young age, Annabeth" Hazel told her

 **"Every August, on the last day of summer session, you get a bead for surviving another year. I've been here longer than most of the counselors, and they're all in college. "**

 **"Why did you come so young?"**

"You ask a lot of questions, Percy" Reyna told him

 **She twisted the ring on her necklace. "None of your business. "**

"Harsh" Leo said

 **"Oh. " I stood there for a minute in uncomfortable silence. "So . . . I could just walk out of here right now if I wanted to?"**

 **"It would be suicide, but you could, with Mr. D's or Chiron's permission. But they wouldn't give permission until the end of the summer session unless . . . "**

 **"Unless?"**

 **"You were granted a quest. But that hardly ever happens. The last time . . . "**

"The future really is different from your time" Alex said "There's always a quest in the future"

 **Her voice trailed off. I could tell from her tone that the last time hadn't gone well.**

 **"Back in the sick room," I said, "when you were feeding me that stuff—"**

 **"Ambrosia. "**

 **"Yeah. You asked me something about the summer solstice. "**

 **Annabeth's shoulders tensed. "So you do know something?"**

 **"Well. . . no. Back at my old school, I overheard Grover and Chiron talking about it. Grover mentioned the summer solstice. He said something like we didn't have much time, because of the deadline. What did that mean?"**

 **She clenched her fists. "I wish I knew. Chiron and the satyrs, they know, but they wont tell me. Something is wrong in Olympus, something pretty major. Last time I was there, everything seemed so normal. "**

 **"You've been to Olympus?"**

 **"Some of us year-rounders—Luke and Clarisse and I and a few others—we took a field trip during winter solstice. That's when the gods have their big annual council. "**

 **"But. . . how did you get there?"**

 **"The Long Island Railroad, of course. You get off at Penn Station. Empire State Building, special elevator to the six hundredth floor. " She looked at me like she was sure I must know this already. "You are a New Yorker, right?"**

"Suuuure Annabeth, cause all New Yorker's know that" Rachel said sarcastically

 **"Oh, sure. " As far as I knew, there were only a hundred and two floors in the Empire State Building, but I decided not to point that out.**

"Smart choice" Annabeth told him

 **"Right after we visited," Annabeth continued, "the weather got weird, as if the gods had started fighting. A couple of times since, I've overheard satyrs talking. The best I can figure out is that something important was stolen. And if it isn't returned by summer solstice, there's going to be trouble. When you came, I was hoping . . . I mean— Athena can get along with just about anybody, except for Ares. And of course shes got the rivalry with Poseidon.**

"And look what happened!" Amythyst announced "You disregarded the rivalry and had us!"

"Love wins!" Jess exclaimed

"Love can beat all odds!" the eleven year old shouted

"Love can survive anything!" Jess cheered

"WE GET IT!" screamed Piper

 **But, I mean, aside from that, I thought we could work together. I thought you might know something. "**

"Oh you did more than just work together" Thalia said and winked at them

 **I shook my head. I wished I could help her, but I felt too hungry and tired and mentally overloaded to ask any more questions.**

 **"I've got to get a quest," Annabeth muttered to herself. "I'm not too young. If they would just tell me the problem . . . "**

 **I could smell barbecue smoke coming from somewhere nearby.**

"So you weren't really listening to me"

"I was hungry!"

 **Annabeth must've heard my stomach growl. She told me to go on, she'd catch me later. I left her on the pier, tracing her finger across the rail as if drawing a battle plan.**

"I'm willing to bet that she was drawing a battle plan" Grover said

 **Back at cabin eleven, everybody was talking and horsing around,**

"They're always like that" Alex muttered

 **waiting for dinner. For the first time, I noticed that a lot of the campers had similar features: sharp noses, upturned eyebrows, mischievous smiles. They were the kind of kids that teachers would peg as troublemakers.**

"Aren't you always pegged as a troublemaker too?" Rachel asked him and had received no answer

 **Thankfully, nobody paid much attention to me as I walked over to my spot on the floor and plopped down with my minotaur horn. . . . . .**

 **The counselor, Luke, came over. He had the Hermes family resemblance, too. It was marred by that scar on his right cheek, but his smile was intact.**

 **"Found you a sleeping bag," he said. "And here, I stole you some toiletries from the camp store. "**

 **I couldn't tell if he was kidding about the stealing part.**

"He wasn't" Annabeth told him

 **I said, "Thanks. "**

 **"No prob. " Luke sat next to me, pushed his back against the wall. "Tough first day?"**

 **"I don't belong here," I said. "I don't even believe in gods. "**

 **"Yeah," he said. "That's how we all started. Once you start believing in them? It doesn't get any easier. "**

"It got easier for me" Rachel said "I got to find out that I wasn't really turning crazy"

 **The bitterness in his voice surprised me, because Luke seemed like a pretty easygoing guy. He looked like he could handle just about anything.**

 **"So your dad is Hermes?" I asked.**

 **He pulled a switchblade out of his back pocket, and for a second I thought he was going to gut me,**

"Maybe he was thinking about it" Nico told him bitterly

 **but he just scraped the mud off the sole of his sandal. "Yeah. Hermes. "**

 **"The wing-footed messenger guy. "**

 **"That's him. Messengers. Medicine. Travelers, merchants, thieves. Anybody who uses the roads. That's why you're here, enjoying cabin elevens hospitality. Hermes isn't picky about who he sponsors. "**

"Why does that sound like an insult?" Josh asked

"Maybe it was meant to be one" Thalia answered

 **I figured Luke didn't mean to call me a nobody. He just had a lot on his mind.**

"Or someone whispering in his mind" Will said

 **"You ever meet your dad?" I asked.**

 **"Once. "**

 **I waited, thinking that if he wanted to tell me, he'd tell me. Apparently, he didn't. I wondered if the story had anything to do with how he got his scar.**

"Nope"

 **Luke looked up and managed a smile. "Don't worry about it, Percy. The campers here, they're mostly good people. After all, were extended family, right? We take care of each other. "**

'take care of each other?' Thalia thought 'you broke your promise about that'

 **He seemed to understand how lost I felt, and I was grateful for that, because an older guy like him—even if he was a counselor—should've steered clear of an uncool middle-schooler like me.**

"Alex is about the same age as him and he doesn't steer clear of middle schooler's" Nick told everyone

It was then that everyone realized that Alex did look older than the other kids from the future, he looked around eighteen or nineteen years old.

"He takes care of us" Nick continued "He's the best brother and counselor ever"

Everyone couldn't help but smile and the two brother's relationship. Until….

"Okay what do you want?" Alex asked Nick

"I want to win tonight!"

"No" Alex told him

Piper noticed that Jess was trying her best not to smile, she wondered what her daughter could've possible seen in Alex. Piper would've steered clear away from him. Not that he was bad looking or anything, he was actually really handsome with his black hair, blue eyes, and an athletic built. But he looked like a bit of bad boy, which wasn't Piper's type

Piper was brought out of her thoughts when Nico resumed reading

 **But Luke had welcomed me into the cabin. He'd even stolen me some toiletries, which was the nicest thing anybody had done for me all day.**

"Why didn't you steal me toiletries?" Nick asked Alex

"Not my thing. And I didn't have too" Alex told him "Your mom sent you a whole bag of toiletries"

 **I decided to ask him my last big question, the one that had been bothering me all afternoon. "Clarisse, from Ares, was joking about me being Big Three material. Then Annabeth . . . twice, she said I might be the one. She said I should talk to the Oracle. What was that all about?"**

 **Luke folded his knife. "I hate prophecies. "**

Everyone nodded their heads at this

 **"What do you mean?"**

 **His face twitched around the scar. "Lets just say I messed things up for everybody else. The last two years, ever since my trip to the Garden of the Hesperides went sour, Chiron hasn't allowed any more quests. Annabeth's been dying to get out into the world. She pestered Chiron so much he finally told her he already knew her fate. He'd had a prophecy from the Oracle. He wouldn't tell her the whole thing, but he said Annabeth wasn't destined to go on a quest yet. She had to wait until. . . somebody special came to the camp. "**

"Somebody special, who was destined to her special someone" Jess said smiling

 **"Somebody special?"**

 **"Don't worry about it, kid," Luke said. "Annabeth wants to think every new camper who comes through here is the omen she's been waiting for. Now, come on, its dinnertime. "**

"I do not!" Annabeth huffed in annoyance

 **The moment he said it, a horn blew in the distance. Somehow, I knew it was a conch shell, even though I'd never heard one before.**

"Do you know everything related to the sea?" Reyna asked

"Yes. Yes we do." Percy, Trina, and Amythyst answered

 **Luke yelled, "Eleven, fall in!"**

"What does it feel like to be a Senior Counselor, with actual cabin mates?" Jason asked and Percy and Nico nodded, the three of them were all alone at their cabins.

"Tiring at times" Will said

"Too much responsibility" Alex said and Piper, Leo, and Annabeth nodded.

 **The whole cabin, about twenty of us, filed into the commons yard. We lined up in order of seniority, so of course I was dead last. Campers came from the other cabins, too, except for the three empty cabins at the end, and cabin eight, which had looked normal in the daytime, but was now starting to glow silver as the sun went down.**

Thalia smiled at the thought of Cabin Eight, she missed her fellow Hunters and wondered what they were doing without their Lieutenant.

 **We marched up the hill to the mess hall pavilion. Satyrs joined us from the meadow. Naiads emerged from the canoeing lake. A few other girls came out of the woods— and when I say out of the woods, I mean straight out of the woods. I saw one girl, about nine or ten years old, melt from the side of a maple tree and come skipping up the hill.**

"That was weird to me at first too" Leo said

 **In all, there were maybe a hundred campers, a few dozen satyrs, and a dozen assorted wood nymphs and naiads.**

 **At the pavilion, torches blazed around the marble columns. A central fire burned in a bronze brazier the size of a bathtub. Each cabin had its own table, covered in white cloth trimmed in purple. Four of the tables were empty, but cabin elevens was way overcrowded. I had to squeeze on to the edge of a bench with half my butt hanging off.**

'There were too many unclaimed campers' Percy thought

 **I saw Grover sitting at table twelve with Mr. D, a few satyrs, and a couple of plump blond boys who looked just like Mr. D. Chiron stood to one side, the picnic table being way too small for a centaur.**

 **Annabeth sat at table six with a bunch of serious-looking athletic kids, all with her gray eyes and honey-blond hair.**

"Athena is definitely too perfectionist with her children" Rachel said

"What?"

"All serious looking athletic kids, and all with gray eyes and honey-blond hair" Rachel explained

"All of them still all look like that" Trina told everyone "Athena is perfectionist"

"All her children are to" Piper said looking at Annabeth

 **Clarisse sat behind me at Ares table. She'd apparently gotten over being hosed down, because she was laughing and belching right alongside her friends.**

 **Finally, Chiron pounded his hoof against the marble floor of the pavilion, and everybody fell silent. He raised a glass. "To the gods!"**

 **Everybody else raised their glasses. "To the gods!"**

 **Wood nymphs came forward with platters of food: grapes, apples, strawberries, cheese, fresh bread, and yes, barbecue! My glass was empty, but Luke said, "Speak to it. Whatever you want—nonalcoholic, of course. "**

"I'm hungry!" Leo yelled clutching his stomach and all the boys nodded

"Let's have diner after this" Jason said

 **I said, "Cherry Coke. "**

 **The glass filled with sparkling caramel liquid.**

 **Then I had an idea. "Blue Cherry Coke. "**

Percy grinned thinking about all the Blue Cherry Coke that he could drink during dinner.

 **The soda turned a violent shade of cobalt.**

 **I took a cautious sip. Perfect. . . . . .**

"Yes perfect" Percy muttered dreamily

 **I drank a toast to my mother.**

 **She's not gone,**

"Definitely not!" Percy and his daughters shouted

 **I told myself. Not permanently, anyway. She's in the Underworld. And if that's a real place, then someday. . .**

 **"Here you go, Percy," Luke said, handing me a platter of smoked brisket.**

 **I loaded my plate and was about to take a big bite when I noticed everybody getting up, carrying their plates toward the fire in the center of the pavilion. I wondered if they were going for dessert or something.**

"I wonder what we can have later for dessert" Grover muttered out loud

"Boys" Annabeth said "Keep reading, Nico"

 **"Come on," Luke told me.**

 **As I got closer, I saw that everyone was taking a portion of their meal and dropping it into the fire, the ripest strawberry, the juiciest slice of beef, the warmest, most buttery roll.**

 **Luke murmured in my ear, "Burnt offerings for the gods. They like the smell. "**

 **"You're kidding. "**

"Nope"

 **His look warned me not to take this lightly, but I couldn't help wondering why an immortal, all-powerful being would like the smell of burning food.**

 **Luke approached the fire, bowed his head, and tossed in a cluster of fat red grapes. "Hermes. "**

 **I was next.**

 **I wished I knew what gods name to say.**

 **Finally, I made a silent plea. Whoever you are, tell me. Please.**

"He did answer your prayer"

 **I scraped a big slice of brisket into the flames.**

 **When I caught a whiff of the smoke, I didn't gag.**

 **It smelled nothing like burning food. It smelled of hot chocolate and fresh-baked brownies, hamburgers on the grill and wildflowers, and a hundred other good things that shouldn't have gone well together, but did. I could almost believe the gods could live off that smoke.**

"I think even I could live off that smoke" Leo said "Hmmmm maybe I should"

"Don't even think about it, Valdez" Calypso scolded him

 **When everybody had returned to their seats and finished eating their meals, Chiron pounded his hoof again for our attention.**

 **Mr. D got up with a huge sigh. "Yes, I suppose I'd better say hello to all you brats. Well, hello. Our activities director, Chiron, says the next capture the flag is Friday. Cabin five presently holds the laurels. "**

 **A bunch of ugly cheering rose from the Ares table.**

 **"Personally," Mr. D continued, "I couldn't care less, but congratulations. Also, I should tell you that we have a new camper today. Peter Johnson. "**

Everybody couldn't help but laugh, though those who knew Mr. D were used to him already. They didn't know if he really does forget their names, or if he was doing it on purpose to annoy the demigods. Though Mr. D was already annoying as it is.

 **Chiron murmured something.**

 **"Er, Percy Jackson," Mr. D corrected. "That's right. Hurrah, and all that. Now run along to your silly campfire. Go on. "**

 **Everybody cheered. We all headed down toward the amphitheater, where Apollos cabin led a sing-along.**

"You always lead the sing along" Annabeth told the three son's of Apollo

"and we do a pretty good job at it" Alex smiled and gave Nick a high five

 **We sang camp songs about the gods and ate smores and joked around, and the funny thing was, I didn't feel that anyone was staring at me anymore. I felt that I was home.**

All the Greek demigods smiled at this, they all felt at home at Camp Half-Blood. Sometimes the camp felt more of a home, than their homes outside the camp.

 **Later in the evening, when the sparks from the campfire were curling into a starry sky, the conch horn blew again, and we all filed back to our cabins. I didn't realize how exhausted I was until I collapsed on my borrowed sleeping bag.**

"You had a pretty tough day" Hazel commented

 **My fingers curled around the Minotaur's horn. I thought about my mom, but I had good thoughts: her smile, the bedtime stories she would read me when I was a kid, the way she would tell me not to let the bedbugs bite.**

Everyone smiled and thought about their respective mortal parents. While Percy and Annabeth's daughters thought about how their Grandmother Sally has done the same for them.

 **When I closed my eyes, I fell asleep instantly.**

 **That was my first day at Camp Half-Blood.**

 **I wish I'd known how briefly I would get to enjoy my new home.**

Nico closed the book "That's the end of the chapter"

The boys looked at each other "Food!" they all shouted at the same time, stood up and raced each other to the kitchen.

'boys' the girls thought

"Come on, Ladies" Reyna told the girls "Dinner time"

 **Hello guys! What do you think of this chapter? Do you like it? Do you love it? Do you think it need's improvement? Tell me in a review! Oh and please do check out my other story: The joy of babysitting :) thanks a million! :)**

 **Here's the summary:**

 **Leo Valdez wore his brightest smile as he entered his friends home, he was always so thrilled whenever Piper called him to babysit her kids. He also loves recording it on his video camera to show it to the children when they're older. This is a collection of Leo's most loved events with his friend's little bundle of joys. May include babysitting help from other characters!**

 **xoxo**

 **Chinfev1203**


	11. Slice of Dinner topped with other things

**DINNER TIME**

Tonight's dinner was different, on the dining table there were boxes and boxes of pizza of all types and flavors, and of course accompanied by cans of diet Coke and Pepsi.

"I love it here!" Leo exclaimed and all the boys nodded with their mouths already full of pizza. The boys all sat together, messing around and having a 'who can eat most pizza slices' contest. Meanwhile, the girls sat together and talked among themselves. Piper and Thalia were talking to Jess; Annabeth was talking to her two daughters; Rachel and Calypso were talking, and Reyna was talking to Hazel. Annabeth was talking to her daughters about books when she saw Josh walking towards them, she nudged her older daughter and pointed her finger at Josh.

"Hey" he greeted her

"Go away" Trina retorted turning her back away from him

"Oh come on, T" he tried to grab her hand but she slapped his hand away "I'm sorry"

Annabeth looked at Piper and they had a silent conversation. They didn't want to become meddlesome mothers when they haven't even technically given birth yet (in their time anyway) but these two have been fighting the entire day over something so small. They just had to interfere before things get out of control.

Annabeth nudged her daughter again "Come on, look at him, he said he's sorry" she smiled at Josh

"I'm your daughter! You're supposed to be on my side"

"We're not on anyone's side" Piper added "We just want to help"

Josh and Trina looked at each other then shared a look with Jess and Amy and the four of them burst out laughing

"That's exactly how both of you are in the future" Josh explained placing his arm around Trina's shoulders

"Always trying to become mediators in our fights" Trina added then seemed to notice her boyfriends arm, she glared at him then laughed "Fine. We're good" and kissed his cheek, her boyfriend kissed her then said something about going back to the boys, and left but not before kissing her again. Trina went back to talking to Annabeth, and Amythyst.

Now that her son's love life was back on track, Piper looked at her daughter who was stealing glances at Alex.

"Seriously what is the deal between the two of you?" she asked her

"I don't want to talk about it" she said taking a bite out of her pizza

"You don't want to talk about it, but you keep stealing glances on him" she told her matter of factly

"Shut up"

"Oh don't you shut up me, young lady, I am your mother," she said dramatically which earned her a look from Thalia saying 'what are you doing?'

"What? Can't I play the I am your mother card?"

"Seriously what's wrong? You can tell me" she told her "you can tell us" she added pointing to her and Thalia who nodded her head encouragingly

Jess seemed to consider it for a moment, but then got interrupted by Will

"Hey guys" he called and everyone looked at him "So what are we going to do tonight? Capture the flag or are we going to judge these two?" he said pointing at his fellow sons of Apollo who were still busy eating pizza.

"I say we do Capture the flag tomorrow" Annabeth suggested "We haven't divided ourselves into teams yet, plus none of us has started planning yet"

"Yeah, I agree with Wise girl" Percy said in between bites of pizza

"I agree with Annabeth too" Reyna said before taking a sip of her Pepsi

"Me too!" Thalia said and everyone soon nodded in agreement

"So its settled then. Capture the flag tomorrow night, and judge these two tonight" Will told everyone

A chorus of Yes were heard around the room

"How should we split the teams?" Jason asked

"Girls versus Boys?" Thalia suggested and all the ladies smiled, though the boys didn't like the sound of that, they felt like they were going to lose that game.

"Greeks versus Romans?" Nico suggested instead

"Draw lots?" Hazel suggested

"How about we toss a coin instead?" Rachel suggested "Heads for Girls versus boys; Tails for Greeks versus Romans"

"Sounds good to me" Percy said "Anybody got a coin?"

Trina fished out a coin from her pocket and tossed it to Percy who immediately caught it. He tossed the coin up in the air, everyone waited in anticipation, the coin landed on the dining table, it landed on….…

"Tails!" the boys cheered in relief, while the girls sighed in disappointment

"Greeks versus Romans then," Annabeth said "But wait, how about these two?" she said pointing at Josh and Jess who was half Greek and half Roman.

"Romans have less number than Greeks, let them be on our side if its okay for them" Jason suggested

"I'm in, daddy" Jess said relieved that she didn't have to be in the same team as Alex

"Count me in too" Josh said

Once that was settled, they finished eating dinner and all went to the music room. The room was huge, with all kinds of instruments neatly placed on the side's of the wall's, there was a small stage at the front, with chairs and sofa's sprawled at the front of the stage. There were also microphones and speakers around the stage.

Jason and Piper, and Annabeth and Percy sat on a love seat; Jess, Josh, Trina and Amy sat on one of the big couches; Thalia sat on a bean bag chair; Rachel, Reyna, and Grover sat on the other big couch; Will, Nico, Hazel and Frank sat on the other big couch; while Leo and Calypso sat on a love seat as well.

"So how does this whole thing work?" Will asked

"Well the criteria varies actually, but usually what we do back at our cabin is, I get to choose a song for my opponent and he gets to choose one for me" Nick explained "and you guys get to decide who did it best"

"Though we usually have these flags or buzzer thingies back at our cabin" Alex said and suddenly there were little signs on the stage that had Alex's name on one side, and Nicks name on the other

"Well that solves it" Alex said picking up the signs and handing it out to everybody

"Just to be clear, I'm not voting" Will told his brothers

"Oh come on, Will!" the two said

"Without my vote, your left with an odd number instead of an even, you wouldn't have a tie"

"Fine" the two grumbled at Will

While the two were writing their song choice on pieces of paper, Rachel was talking to Will.

"You didn't have competitions like these yet?" she asked him

"Yeah but we mostly compete with archery and other sports, I don't join them though, I just let my siblings compete with each other and stop them when they start fighting" he told her

Nick and Alex exchange their pieces of paper and started getting their instruments

"Who's going first?" Percy asked

"The oldie gets to go first" Nick teased his older brother and went to seat beside Jess

"Shut up, Montgomery"

Alex went up on the stage, and sat on a chair, fixed the microphone and started strumming his guitar.

 **(AN: Too much too ask by Niall Horan. Don't own this song, he does)**

 **Waiting here for someone  
Only yesterday, we were on the run  
You smile back at me and your face lit up the sun  
Now I'm waiting here for someone**

 **[Pre-Chorus 1]  
And oh, love, do you feel this rough?  
Why's it only you I'm thinking of?**

Alex sneaked a look at Jess but everyone noticed that he looked at her. ****

**[Chorus]  
My shadow's dancing  
Without you for the first time  
My heart is hoping  
You'll walk right in tonight  
Tell me there are things that you regret  
'Cause if I'm being honest, I ain't over you yet  
It's ****all I'm asking** **  
** **Is it too much to ask?  
Is it too much to ask?**

He was really looking at her this time, but she was trying her best to avoid looking at him. Josh seeing his sister's discomfort placed his arm around her. ****

**[Verse 2]  
Someone's moving outside  
The lights come on and down the drive  
I forget you're not here when I close my eyes  
Do you still think of me sometimes?**

 **[Pre-Chorus 2]  
And oh, love, watch the sun coming up  
** **Don'** **t it feel f****** **d up we're not in love?** ****

 **[Chorus]  
My shadow's dancing  
Without you for the first time  
My heart is hoping  
You'll walk right in tonight  
Tell me there are things that you regret  
'Cause if I'm being honest, I ain't over you yet  
It's all I'm asking  
Is it too much to ask?**

 **[Bridge]  
My shadow's dancing  
Without you for the first time  
My heart is hoping  
You'll walk right in tonight  
Tell me there are things that you regret  
'Cause if I'm being honest, I ain't over you yet**

 **[Chorus]  
** **My shadow's dancing  
Without you for the first time  
My heart is hoping  
You'll walk right in tonight  
Tell me there are things that you regret  
'Cause if I'm being honest, I ain't over you yet  
It's all I'm asking  
Is it too much to ask?** ****

 **[Outro]  
It's all I'm asking  
Is it too much to ask?  
It's all I'm asking  
Is it too much to ask?**

Everyone was wondering what happened between the two, especially Jason and Piper who were whispering at each other. Alex ended the song and he was still looking at Jess. Nick hoped his plan worked, he chose a song that he knew would send a message to both Alex and Jess. He's hoping that his brother and best friend would get back together soon. Soon enough it was Nick's turn to sing.

 **(AN: Don't own the song this is In my Blood by Shawn Mendes)**

 **[Intro]  
Help me, it's like the walls are caving in  
Sometimes I feel like giving up  
But I just can't  
It isn't in my blood**

 **[Verse 1]  
Laying on the bathroom floor, feeling nothing  
** **I'm overwhelmed and insecure, give me something  
I could take to ease my mind slowly** **  
Just have a drink and you'll feel better  
Just take her home and you'll feel better  
Keep telling me that it gets better  
Does it ever?**

 **[Pre-Chorus]  
Help me, it's like the walls are caving in  
Sometimes I feel like giving up  
No medicine is strong enough  
Someone help me  
I'm crawling in my skin  
Sometimes I feel like giving up  
But I just can't**

 **[Chorus]  
** **It isn't in my blood  
It isn't in my blood** ****

 **[Verse 2]  
I'm looking through my phone again feeling anxious  
Afraid to be alone again, I hate this  
I'm trying to find a way to chill, can't breathe, oh  
Is there somebody who could...**

 **[Pre-Chorus]  
Help me, it's like the walls are caving in  
Sometimes I feel like giving up  
No medicine is strong enough  
Someone help me  
I'm crawling in my skin  
Sometimes I feel like giving up  
But I just can't**

 **[Chorus]  
It isn't in my blood  
It isn't in my blood**

 **[Bridge]  
I need somebody now  
I need somebody now  
Someone to help me out  
I need somebody now**

 **[Pre-Chorus]  
** **Help me, it's like the walls are caving in** **  
Sometimes I feel like giving up  
But I just can't**

 **[Chorus]  
It isn't in my blood  
It isn't in my blood, oh**

 **[Outro]  
It isn't in my blood  
I need somebody now  
It isn't in my blood  
I need somebody now  
It isn't in my blood**

When Nick finished the song, everyone was impressed by how good the two brothers were. It was actually really hard for everyone to choose who to vote for. Will was glad he didn't have to choose, he never really liked choosing between his siblings, he liked them all equally. They were siblings, after all, Will thought to himself. Jason and Piper knew who they would vote for, they were just hoping that their daughter wouldn't mind. Everyone started showing their signboards on who they voted for, except for Jess who was still undecided. Trina, Percy, Amy, Hazel, Leo, Jason, Piper, and Nico voted for Alex. While Josh, Reyna, Frank, Thalia, Calypso, Annabeth, Rachel and Grover voted for Nick.

Will counted the votes "We have a tie? Why do we have a tie? We had an odd number!" then he looked at Jess who was still flipping her signboard back and forth while staring at the floor

"Hey, Jessybear vote already!" Nick screamed at her

"Everyone already voted?" She asked and looked around

"Except for you. Your the tiebreaker" Percy told her

"Can I abstain?" She asked looking at Piper for help, Piper wanted to help her but a part of her wanted to know why she wanted to abstain. She could just vote for Nick and get this over with, Piper thought.

"No. We need a tiebreaker. We need your vote" Will insisted

"Can't they just do another song?" she asked and looked around at all the demigods who were waiting to see who she would vote for

"No. It will take too much time and I'm already sleepy" Amythyst whined

Jess looked at Piper one last time, then at Nick and Alex "Fine. I'll vote" she flipped her sign that showed Alex's name then hid her face behind Josh

"Really?" Alex asked surprised that she actually voted for him. Nick tried to hide his smile, his plan actually worked. Maybe he should start matchmaking now too, he thought to himself, stopping his urge to smile. Alex looked at Jess trying to get her to look at him too, but she avoided him at all cost. Everyone soon went back to their separate rooms.

Later that night, Jason and Piper were talking in Piper's room when they heard someone crying in the room next to hers.

"Is someone crying?" Jason asked Piper "Who's in the other room"

"Jessy," she told him "Come on, Sparky, time to be parents"

When Jason was about to knock on Jessy's room, Piper stopped him "Actually can you go get Josh first?" he did as he was told and went on his way to Josh's room. Piper didn't bother to knock, she opened the door and found her daughter curled up on her bed crying. She didn't seem to notice Piper until she sat next to her and touched her hair. Jess immediately sat up and wiped her tears, while looking at Piper "What are you doing here?" she asked still trying to stop her tears from falling

"Jason and I heard you crying from my room" she explained "Do you need a mom?"

"You don't really look like a mom right now" she told her forcing a smile

"Then right now, I'm your friend" Piper told her "Need a hug?"

"Yeah… Yes. I do mommy" she told Piper as she hugged her, she started crying again, this time she was shaking and Piper hugged her tighter. Jess kept muttering and crying "I still love him" "Why do I still love him?" "Why does it hurt so much?" Piper didn't really know what to do, she never had to comfort someone like this before, but she knew she had to be here for Jess. She looked so broken right now that Piper almost wanted to slash Katoptris down Alex's throat, but that really won't do any good for anyone. Jason and Josh soon arrived, not bothering to knock at the door either.

Josh sat next to his sister while Jason sat beside Piper, not really knowing what to do.

"Jess" Josh said patting his sisters back gently

"Joshy" she said and hugged her brother "Please be honest with me"

"About what, Sis?"

"What's wrong with me? Am I not that pretty enough? Or am I too mean? Or too demanding?" she asked crying "What's wrong with me?"

"Jess nothing is wrong with you" Josh told her

"Then why did he leave?!" she asked crying harder now

Josh wanted to punch Alex in the face, his sister was the most confident person he knew. Yet, here she was suddenly so insecure about herself. Jason was furious as well, he really hasn't gotten to know his daughter yet. But he knows that he doesn't want her feeling this way.

"Hey" Jason cupped his daughters face "Nothing is wrong with you. You are the prettiest, most perfect daughter that I have" he said smiling at her and kissed her forehead "and if a guy can't realize that, then he doesn't deserve you"

"I'm your only daughter so you don't really have much of a choice" she said calming down now "Thanks" she added hugging Jason

"Can I join that?" Piper said smiling at the two

"Come on family group hug" Jason told Piper and Josh, the four of them had a family group hug and soon enough Jessy stopped crying.

"Thank you guys you are the best" Jess told them

"Kind of wish you told them at our time huh?" Josh asked his sister smiling

"Yeah" she smiled

"You didn't tell the future us?" Piper asked her

"No" she confessed looking down "I.. uh… I didn't want the both of you to get mad at him, So I hid the break up"

"I don't know much about my future self, but you can tell me anything, and Jason too, right Jason?" she nudged him

"Yes of course"

Jess smiled at all of them "Can you all sleep here tonight?" she asked and they all nodded. It was surprising how the four of them had managed to fit on Jessy's bed. Before they all went to sleep, Piper wondered how her future self's relationship was to her daughter. She wants to be as close as she can be with her daughter. Since she never really grew up with her mom, and her dad doesn't have much time for her. Piper was determined that she and Jason would be as close to their children as much as possible, during their time here in reading the books.

While that was happening with the Grace Family, the Jackson Family had a different scene.

"he did what?!" Annabeth asked laughing on Trina's bed while Percy and Amythyst were playing rock, paper, scissors on the floor "Can you repeat that again?"

"When I was 6 years old, and Amythyst was a year old. Dad wanted to be a Little mermaid family for Halloween." Trina started "But I didn't want to be a mermaid, I wanted to be Belle"

"And?" Annabeth asked lying on the bed

"Why would you want to be Belle?" Percy asked from the floor "Ariel is way better!"

"So you and I decided to be Belle, we did the whole mother and daughter twinning thing" she continued "But dad" she said glaring at Percy who stuck out his tongue at her which made her laugh "Real mature daddy. Anyways, he bought a little mermaid costume anyway. He knew he couldn't convince you but he tried to convince me. I got so fed up with him trying to tell me how Ariel was better than Belle, trying to get me to change, that I threw my book at him. It was a good thing he wasn't carrying Amy" the girl laughed

"Seaweed Brain" Annabeth muttered laughing

"That's mean" Percy told her pouting as he and Amy sat on the bed

"We've got more stories like that" Amy told him yawning "and he just lost rock, paper, scissors"

"You were annoying me that time!" Trina threw a pillow at him, Percy threw the pillow back at her which resulted to a pillow fight between the Jackson family. Annabeth tried to back away at first, but Amy threw a pillow at her before she could. Trina's room was soon filled with giggles and feathers.

 **Hello everyone! What do you guys think? Do you like it? Love it? Think it needs improvement? Tell me in a review! :) Please do check out my other story: The Joy of Babysitting. Thanks a million! :)**

 **xoxo**

 **Chinfev1203**


	12. Chapter 8: Will

The next morning the dinning room was already buzzing with the demigods eating breakfast, there were stacks of bacon and pancakes on the dinning table.

"You three are drowning them" Annabeth scolded Percy, Trina and Amythyst who were drowning their pancakes with syrup

The three looked at each other and smiled "We can't drown and neither can our pancakes!" they cheered together laughing

"Oh my gods" Annabeth muttered as she tried to avoid Percy who was attempting on shoving a slice of drowned pancake inside Annabeth's mouth.

"Didn't you and Percy already have that conversation on the Argo two?" Hazel asked and Annabeth nodded still trying to avoid Percy's fork.

"and they'll continue to have this conversation through the years" Trina told Hazel as she added more syrup to her pancake

"I feel like your eating syrup with pancake, instead of pancakes with syrup" Reyna told the girl

"No I'm not"

"Yes you are" Josh said as he gave her a cup of coffee and pecked her on the lips "she's obsessed with syrup and coffee"

"She's also obsessed with you" Nick teased and got a fork dripping with syrup thrown his way, barely missing his eye "that could've poked me in the eye!"

"It was meant to! but I haven't had my morning coffee yet, so I have bad aim" Trina glared at him while taking a sip of her coffee "Babe, can you get me a new fork please?" she asked her boyfriend

"Teenagers and their endearments" Amythyst grumbled making a disgusted expression "Babe is a pig, Trina" she told her sister who glared at her and returned to her pancake

"and it can also be Frank" Nico teased

"What do you mean, Amy?" Hazel and Calypso asked

"Though I agree with you, I don't like being called babe either" Calypso told her while she glared at Leo

"You know the movie where the pig was named babe, you should watch it, I like that movie" the little girl explained

"Ooh I loved that too!" Rachel exclaimed "We should totally watch it after we're done reading the books" she told Hazel and Calypso

Meanwhile….

"How can you guys eat that?" Piper asked Leo, Jason, and Josh who were now gulping down bacon strips

"How can you not?!" Leo exclaimed "Bacon is the best thing ever"

"Didn't I raise you guys as a vegetarian?" she asked Josh

"Nope. Though there's always a lot of vegetarian food at home" he told her "and besides, I could never live without eating bacon"

"Same here!" Leo and Jason said

Jess then entered the dinning room wearing a pink sports bra, and pink work out shorts, with her blond hair in a ponytail.

"Why are you dressed like that? And where have you been?" Jason asked

"I was at the Arena, working out" she explained as she entered the kitchen, and came back holding an apple and a glass of milk

"Why?" Leo asked

"This body doesn't do itself you know, especially with all the fast food we've been eating" she told him and took a seat next to Jason

"That's all your going to eat?" Jason asked her

"Yeah" she smiled

"You should eat more, young Lady" Jason told her as he gave her a plate with bacon and pancakes

"No" she shoved the plate away

"Who are you working out for?" Nick asked wiggling his eyebrows and glanced at Alex

"For myself" she rolled her eyes "I don't need a man you know, if that's what your implying"

"Preach it sister!" Thalia exclaimed

"Ladies run this world!" Rachel said

"Ladies rule!" Reyna agreed

"Women empowerment!" Trina added "We don't need a man"

"Excuse me?" her boyfriend asked

"I can live perfectly fine without you" she told him "but living with you in my life is so much better" she added smiling at him. Her boyfriend just shook his head and pinched her nose.

"Ever think about becoming a hunter?" Thalia asked Jess

"I tried but you wouldn't let me"

"Why not?" Will asked her and looked at Thalia wondering how she could refuse someone who wanted to join the Hunter's of Artemis

"She said 'you can't swear off men, you wouldn't survive a day" Josh explained "Which is totally true"

"I can so"

"Really? The longest you've gone without a boyfriend was three months" Nick said

"Seriously?!" Jason asked suddenly alarmed "Oh boy"

"I can last longer"

"Prove it" her brother challenged her "I dare you to go a year without a boyfriend, if you don't then I will get 75% of your allowance for 6 months"

"What?! you cant have my allowance I need that!" she exclaimed

"You can't do it then" her brother said taking a sip of his coffee

Alex looked at Jess wondering if she would actually say Yes to Josh's dare. If she said yes, then it would actually be good for Alex, she wouldn't have a boyfriend until he figured out how to get her back. Everyone also looked at her, waiting if she would actually take the deal.

"It's a deal, brother dear" she told him "if I do manage to do it, then I get 75 % of your allowance"

"Deal" he told her and they shook hands

"I kind of like this deal, I feel like my future self would agree too" Jason said

And everyone couldn't help but smile at Jason's protective father instincts

"Can you make it two years though, or longer?" Jason added

"DAD!" his daughter screamed "Stop giving him ideas!"

"Anyways" Reyna started "if everyone's done with breakfast, we should start reading again"

Everyone agreed and made their way back to the living room to start reading

 **8\. WE CAPTURE A FLAG** Will read,

 **The next few days I settled into a routine that felt almost normal, if you don** **'** **t count the fact that I was getting lessons from satyrs, nymphs, and a centaur.**

"That's the normal for demigods" Alex commented

 **Each morning I took Ancient Greek from Annabeth, and we talked about the gods and goddesses in the present tense, which was kind of weird. I discovered Annabeth was right**

"As always" Percy muttered and his daughters agreed, looking at their mother

 **about my dyslexia: Ancient Greek wasn** **'** **t that hard for me to read. At least, no harder than English. After a couple of mornings, I could stumble through a few lines of Homer without too much headache.**

 **The rest of the day, I** **'** **d rotate through outdoor activities, looking for something I was good at. Chiron tried to teach me archery, but we found out pretty quick I wasn** **'** **t any good with a bow and arrow. He didn** **'** **t complain, even when he had to desnag a stray arrow out of his tail.**

"Seriously?!" Frank asked

Percy just waved him off as everyone started laughing

Alex laughed and looked at Trina "Does that remind you of anyone?"

"I would never try to teach you archery, ever again" Nick told her rubbing his shoulder

"She hit me with a stray arrow too, when I tried to teach her" Alex added

"Okay! They get it!" Trina screamed and Josh tightened his grip around her shoulders "Dad and I are terrible at archery"

"I'm not" Amy said "At least I don't hit people accidentally" she laughed

 **Foot racing? No good either. The wood-nymph instructors left me in the dust. They told me not to worry about it. They** **'** **d had centuries of practice running away from lovesick gods. But still, it was a little humiliating to be slower than a tree.**

 **And wrestling? Forget it. Every time I got on the mat, Clarisse would pulverize me.**

 **"There** **'** **s more where that came from, punk," she** **'** **d mumble in my ear.**

 **The only thing I really excelled at was canoeing, and that wasn** **'** **t the kind of heroic skill people expected to see from the kid who had beaten the Minotaur.**

"I think its pretty heroic" Amy told him and Percy smiled

 **I knew the senior campers and counselors were watching me, trying to decide who my dad was, but they weren** **'** **t having an easy time of it.** **I wasn** **'** **t as strong as the Ares kids, or as good at archery as the Apollo kids.**

"Wasn't as good as the Apollo kids?" Will asked "You're terrible at archery!"

 **I didn** **'** **t have Hephaestus skill with metalwork**

"Nope. You really don't" Leo commented as he pulled out a few tools from his tool belt

 **or—gods forbid— Dionysus way with vine plants. Luke told me I might be a child of Hermes, a kind of jack-of-all-trades, master of none. But I got the feeling he was just trying to make me feel better. He really didn** **'** **t know what to make of me either.**

 **Despite all that, I liked camp. I got used to the morning fog over the beach,**

"Of course you like the beach" Annabeth whispered to him and kissed his cheek

 **the smell of hot strawberry fields in the afternoon, even the weird noises of monsters in the woods at night. I would eat dinner with cabin eleven, scrape part of my meal into the fire,**

The Greeks sighed at the thought of Camp

 **and try to feel some connection to my real dad. Nothing came. Just that warm feeling I** **'** **d always had, like the memory of his smile. I tried not to think too much about my mom, but I kept wondering: if gods and monsters were real, if all this magical stuff was possible, surely there was some way to save her, to bring her back. . . .**

"Oh Percy"

 **I started to understand Luke** **'** **s bitterness and how he seemed to resent his father, Hermes. So okay, maybe gods had important things to do. But couldn** **'** **t they call once in a while, or thunder, or something? Dionysus could make Diet Coke appear out of thin air. Why couldn** **'** **t my dad, whoever he was, make a phone appear?**

The demigods silently agreed, they wished their godly parents had made more effort in getting to know them, or talk to them. Maybe ask them once in a while how they were all doing.

 **Thursday afternoon, three days after I** **'** **d arrived at Camp** **Half-Blood, I had my first sword-fighting lesson. Everybody from cabin eleven gathered in the big circular arena, where Luke would be our instructor.**

 **We started with basic stabbing and slashing, using some straw-stuffed dummies in Greek armor. I guess I did okay. At least, I understood what I was supposed to do and my reflexes were good.**

"That's good" Reyna nodded at Percy

 **The problem was, I couldn** **'** **t find a blade that felt right in my hands. Either they were too heavy, or too light, or too long.**

"Because a different sword was destined to be your sword" Rachel said

 **Luke tried his best to fix me up, but he agreed that none of the practice blades seemed to work for me.**

"He was lucky you didn't have a balanced blade at that time" Will said

 **We moved on to dueling in pairs. Luke announced he would be my partner, since this was my first time.**

 **"Good luck," one of the campers told me. "Luke** **'** **s the best swordsman in the last three hundred years. "**

"Really?" Jason asked

"Not anymore" Thalia scoffed and looked at Percy grinning

"What? Do I have dirt in my face?" he asked Thalia

"Never mind"

 **"Maybe he** **'** **ll go easy on me," I said.**

"I'm guessing he didn't?" Rachel asked

"Not at all"

Thalia snorted

 **The camper snorted.**

 **Luke showed me thrusts and parries and shield blocks the hard way. With every swipe, I got a little more battered and bruised. "Keep your guard up, Percy," he** **'** **d say, then whap me in the ribs with the flat of his blade. "No, not that far up!" Whap! "Lunge!" Whap! "Now, back!" Whap!**

"I give sword fighting lessons, and I'm not that harsh to new campers" Josh said shaking his head at Luke's antics

 **By the time he called a break, I was soaked in sweat. Everybody swarmed the drinks cooler. Luke poured ice water on his head, which looked like such a good idea, I did the same.**

"oh thank gods!" Trina cheered "go get him daddy!"

 **Instantly, I felt better. Strength surged back into my arms. The sword didn** **'** **t feel so awkward.**

"Yey!" Amy cheered as well

 **"Okay, everybody circle up!" Luke ordered. "If Percy doesn** **'** **t mind, I want to give you a little demo. "**

"Seriously?!" Josh exclaimed "give demos to more experienced campers!"

 **Great, I thought. Lets all watch Percy get pounded.**

"That might make a good show actually" Thalia laughed

"Next up for Percy gets pounded TV: Percy gets pounded by a hammer" Amy laughed and Percy frowned at her

 **The Hermes guys gathered around. They were suppressing smiles. I figured they** **'** **d been in my shoes before and couldn** **'** **t wait to see how Luke used me for a punching bag.**

"Doesn't a lot of people want to use you as a punching bag at some point?" Annabeth asked him

 **He told everybody he was going to demonstrate a disarming technique: how to twist the enemy** **'** **s blade with the flat of your own sword so that he had no choice but to drop his weapon.**

"You taught me that" Josh smiled at Percy

"I did?" he asked

"Yeah. You were trying to teach Trina but she was too busy reading a book, so you taught me instead"

"You chose reading over sword fighting?" Reyna asked

"It was a good book, I couldn't put it down" Annabeth smiled at her daughter at that response

"You sound like Belle" Jess told her

"Who?" Calypso asked

"A disney princess" Amythyst answered

"A what princess?" Calypso asked again "Is that a new kingdom?"

"I'll tell you all about it at lunch" the eleven year old smiled at her

 **"This is difficult," he stressed. "I** **'** **ve had it used against me.**

"I'd would have loved to have used that against him" Nico muttered under his breath

 **No laughing at Percy, now. Most swordsmen have to work years to master this technique. "**

"Most" Josh smiled knowingly

While Nico grumbled to himself "Yeah sure, cause Luke probably did took years to master that"

 **He demonstrated the move on me in slow motion. Sure enough, the sword clattered out of my hand.**

 **"Now in real time," he said, after I** **'** **d retrieved my weapon. "We keep sparring until one of us pulls it off. Ready, Percy?"**

 **I nodded, and Luke came after me. Somehow, I kept him from getting a shot at the hilt of my sword. My senses opened up. I saw his attacks coming. I countered. I stepped forward and tried a thrust of my own. Luke deflected it easily, but I saw a change in his face. His eyes narrowed, and he started to press me with more force.**

"Go get him, Percy!" Piper and Rachel cheered

 **The sword grew heavy in my hand. The balance wasn** **'** **t right. I knew it was only a matter of seconds before Luke took me down, so I figured, What the heck?**

 **I tried the disarming maneuver.**

 **My blade hit the base of Luke** **'** **s and I twisted, putting my whole weight into a downward thrust.**

 **Clang.**

 **Luke** **'** **s sword rattled against the stones. The tip of my blade was an inch from his undefended chest.**

The campers cheered and all smiled at Percy

"Percy for the win!" Frank cheered

"Go Aqua dude!" Nico added

"Go Kelp Head!" Thalia continued

"Yey for Daddy seaweed brain" Amythyst laughed

 **The other campers were silent.**

 **I lowered my sword. "Um, sorry. "**

"WHY ARE YOU SORRY?!" everyone screamed at Percy

 **For a moment, Luke was too stunned to speak.**

"Hell yeah!" Grover cheered

 **"Sorry?" His scarred face broke into a grin. "By the gods, Percy, why are you sorry? Show me that again!"**

"Yes, Percy show him that again" Reyna said

 **I didn** **'** **t want to. The short burst of manic energy had completely abandoned me. But Luke insisted.**

"You should've poured water on yourself again" Trina told Percy

"I didn't know about it at that time"

 **This time, there was no contest. The moment our swords connected, Luke hit my hilt and sent my weapon skidding across the floor.**

 **After a long pause, somebody in the audience said, "Beginners luck?"**

"More like water's luck" Hazel said

 **Luke wiped the sweat off his brow. He appraised at me with an entirely new interest. "Maybe," he said. "But I wonder what Percy could do with a balanced sword. . . . "**

"Beat you up, that's what" Nico grumbled

 **Friday afternoon, I was sitting with Grover at the lake, resting from a near-death experience on the climbing wall. Grover had scampered to the top like a mountain goat,**

"Well he is a goat, half goat" Calypso commented

 **but the lava had almost gotten me. My shirt had smoking holes in it. The hairs had been singed off my forearms.**

"I hate it when that happens" Alex said rubbing his forearms

 **We sat on the pier, watching the naiads do underwater basket-weaving, until I got up the nerve to ask Grover how his conversation had gone with Mr. D.**

 **His face turned a sickly shade of yellow.**

 **"Fine," he said. "Just great. "**

 **"So your careers still on track?"**

 **He glanced at me nervously. "Chiron t-told you I want a searchers license?"**

"What's that?" Calypso and the Romans asked

"I think it will be explained later" Grover answered them

 **"Well. . . no. " I had no idea what a searchers license was, but it didn** **'** **t seem like the right time to ask. "He just said you had big plans, you know . . . and that you needed credit for completing a keepers assignment. So did you get it?"**

 **Grover looked down at the naiads. "Mr. D suspended judgment. He said I hadn't failed or succeeded with you yet, so our fates were still tied together.**

"Your fates are forever tied together" Annabeth told the two boys

 **If you got a quest and I went along to protect you, and we both came back alive, then maybe he'd consider the job complete. "**

 **My spirits lifted. "Well, that's not so bad, right?"**

 **"Blaa-ha-ha! He might as well have transferred me to stable-cleaning duty. The chances of you getting a quest. . . and even if you did, why would you want me along?"**

"I would always want you along, G-man" Percy smiled at him and patted his back

 **"Of course I'd want you along!"**

"See?"

 **Grover stared glumly into the water. "Basket-weaving . . . Must be nice to have a useful skill."**

 **I tried to reassure him that he had lots of talents, but that just made him look more miserable. We talked about canoeing and swordplay for a while, then debated the pros and cons of the different gods. Finally, I asked him about the four empty cabins.**

 **"Number eight, the silver one, belongs to Artemis," he said. "She vowed to be a maiden forever. So of course, no kids. The cabin is, you know, honorary. If she didn't have one, she'd be mad. "**

"Also, the hunters need a place to stay whenever we're at camp" Thalia said

 **"Yeah, okay. But the other three, the ones at the end. Are those the Big Three?"**

 **Grover tensed. We were getting close to a touchy subject. "No. One of them, number two, is Hera's," he said. "That's another honorary thing. She's the goddess of marriage, so of course she wouldn't go around having affairs with mortals. That's her husbands job. When we say the Big Three, we mean the three powerful brothers, the sons of Kronos. "**

 **"Zeus, Poseidon, Hades. "**

 **"Right. You know. After the great battle with the Titans, they took over the world from their dad and drew lots to decide who got what. "**

 **"Zeus got the sky," I remembered. "Poseidon the sea, Hades the Underworld. "**

 **"Uh-huh. "**

 **"But Hades doesn't have a cabin here. "**

"He has one now" Nico smiled remembering his cabin

 **"No. He doesn't have a throne on Olympus, either. He sort of does his own thing down in the Underworld. If he did have a cabin here . . . " Grover shuddered. "Well, it wouldn't be pleasant. Lets leave it at that. "**

Nico glared at Grover

"Sorry" Grover apologized

 **"But Zeus and Poseidon—they both had, like, a bazillion kids in the myths. Why are their cabins empty?"**

"Because of a stupid oath" Thalia said

 **Grover shifted his hooves uncomfortably. "About sixty years ago, after World War II, the Big Three agreed they wouldn't sire any more heroes. Their children were just too powerful. They were affecting the course of human events too much, causing too much carnage. World War II, you know, that was basically a fight between the sons of Zeus and Poseidon on one side, and the sons of Hades on the other. The winning side, Zeus and Poseidon, made Hades swear an oath with them: no more affairs with mortal women. They all swore on the River Styx. "**

 **Thunder boomed. . . . . . . .**

"But Zeus broke the oath first" Thalia muttered

 **I said, "That's the most serious oath you can make. "**

 **Grover nodded.**

 **"And the brothers kept their word—no kids?"**

"Nope" Thalia, Percy and Jason chorused

 **Grover's face darkened. "Seventeen years ago, Zeus fell off the wagon. There was this TV starlet with a big fluffy eighties hairdo—he just couldn't help himself.**

"Eighties hairdo?" Jessy asked "You mean like this?" in a blink of an eye her blond hair got styled into a big fluffy eighties hairdo

"oh my gods of olympus! don't do that ever again!" Thalia yelled who looked liked she saw a ghost

Everyone looked at Thalia with concern

"Why not?" Jessy whined looking into a mirror "I think I look good, I can totally pull this off"

"Yes you do look good, but you kind of look like mom in that hairstyle and its scaring me" Thalia told her

"She does?" Jason asked

"Unfortunately yes" Thalia answered "Please change your hair back"

"Fine" her hair turned back to her natural straight blond hair

 **When their child was born, a little girl named Thalia . . . well, the River Styx is serious about promises. Zeus himself got off easy because he's immortal, but he brought a terrible fate on his daughter. "**

 **"But that isn't fair. It wasn't the little girls fault. "**

"Yeah it wasn't the little girls fault" Thalia agreed

"Hard to think of Thalia as a little girl" Nico commented

 **Grover hesitated. "Percy, children of the Big Three have powers greater than other half-bloods. They have a strong aura, a scent that attracts monsters. When Hades found out about the girl, he wasn't too happy about Zeus breaking his oath. Hades let the worst monsters out of Tartarus to torment Thalia. A satyr was assigned to be her keeper when she was twelve, but there was nothing he could do. He tried to escort her here with a couple of other half-bloods she'd befriended. They almost made it. They got all the way to the top of that hill. "**

 **He pointed across the valley, to the pine tree where I'd fought the minotaur. "All three Kindly Ones were after them, along with a horde of hellhound's. They were about to be overrun when Thalia told her satyr to take the other two half-bloods to safety while she held off the monsters. She was wounded and tired, and she didn't want to live like a hunted animal. The satyr didn't want to leave her, but he couldn't change her mind, and he had to protect the others. So Thalia made her final stand alone, at the top of that hill. As she died, Zeus took pity on her. He turned her into that pine tree. Her spirit still helps protect the borders of the valley. That's why the hill is called Half-Blood Hill. "**

Everyone was silent for a while but they were all looking at Thalia who was looking down

"That tree was you?" Jason asked

"For a while, yeah" she answered her brother "Keep reading, Will"

 **I stared at the pine in the distance.**

 **The story made me feel hollow, and guilty too. A girl my age had sacrificed herself to save her friends. She had faced a whole army of monsters. Next to that, my victory over the Minotaur didn't seem like much. I wondered, if I'd acted differently, could I have saved my mother?**

"That was meant to happen,Percy, you couldn't have changed that" Rachel said

 **"Grover," I said, "have heroes really gone on quests to the Underworld?"**

 **"Sometimes," he said. "Orpheus. Hercules. Houdini. "**

 **"And have they ever returned somebody from the dead?"**

'I was returned from the dead by Nico' Hazel thought and sighed

Frank noticing her sudden change of mood, held her hand

 **"No. Never. Orpheus came close. . . . Percy, you're not seriously thinking—"**

 **"No," I lied. "I was just wondering. So . . . a satyr is always assigned to guard a demigod?"**

"Nice way to change the subject, Perce" Grover muttered and Percy smiled sheepily

 **Grover studied me warily. I hadn't persuaded him that I'd really dropped the Underworld idea.**

"Nope"

 **"Not always. We go undercover to a lot of schools. We try to sniff out the half-bloods**

"That makes you sound like a dog" Leo commented laughing, he then received a glare from Grover

 **who have the makings of great heroes. If we find one with a very strong aura, like a child of the Big Three, we alert Chiron. He tries to keep an eye on them, since they could cause really huge problems. "**

 **"And you found me. Chiron said you thought I might be something special. "**

 **Grover looked as if I'd just led him into a trap. "I didn't. . . Oh, listen, don't think like that. If you were—you know—you'd never ever be allowed a quest, and I'd never get my license. You're probably a child of Hermes. Or maybe even one of the minor gods, like Nemesis, the god of revenge. Don't worry, okay?"**

"You do know that Nemesis is a goddess, right?" Annabeth asked

"I know. I know. I was blabbering, I freaked out"

 **I got the idea he was reassuring himself more than me.**

"I really was actually"

 **That night after dinner, there was a lot more excitement than usual.**

 **At last, it was time for capture the flag.**

 **When the plates were cleared away, the conch horn sounded and we all stood at our tables.**

 **Campers yelled and cheered as Annabeth and two of her siblings ran into the pavilion carrying a silk banner. It was about ten feet long, glistening gray, with a painting of a barn owl above an olive tree.**

Annabeth smiled

 **From the opposite side of the pavilion, Clarisse and her buddies ran in with another banner, of identical size, but gaudy red, painted with a bloody spear and a boars head.**

 **I turned to Luke and yelled over the noise, "Those are the flags?"**

 **"Yeah. "**

 **"Ares and Athena always lead the teams?"**

 **"Not always," he said. "But often. "**

"Not that often anymore, in our time" Josh told them

"Who leads the teams now?" Annabeth asked

"Zeus and Ares" he answered smiling "Athena is always on our side though"

 **"So, if another cabin captures one, what do you do— repaint the flag?"**

 **He grinned. "You'll see. First we have to get one. "**

 **"Whose side are we on?"**

 **He gave me a sly look, as if he knew something I didn't. The scar on his face made him look almost evil in the torchlight.**

"Almost?" Thalia scoffed

"Maybe, absolutely evil" Nico commented

 **"We've made a temporary alliance with Athena. Tonight, we get the flag from Ares. And you are going to help. "**

'Help? More like be the bait' Percy thought to himself, remembering how that game went

 **The teams were announced. Athena had made an alliance with Apollo and Hermes, the two biggest cabins.**

"They still are the biggest cabins" Alex said "Aphrodite too"

 **Apparently, privileges had been traded—shower times, chore schedules, the best slots for activities—in order to win support.**

 **Ares had allied themselves with everybody else: Dionysus, Demeter, Aphrodite, and Hephaestus. From what I'd seen, Dionysus kids were actually good athletes, but there were only two of them. Demeter's kids had the edge with nature skills and outdoor stuff but they weren't very aggressive.**

"Not at all"

 **Aphrodite's sons and daughters I wasn't too worried about. They mostly sat out every activity and checked their reflections in the lake and did their hair and gossiped.**

Piper sighed at her siblings antics, she wished more of them paid attention to training

 **Hephaestus kids weren't pretty, and there were only four of them, but they were big and burly from working in the metal shop all day.**

"Why isn't Leo big? He's too short" Reyna commented

"I'm unique that way" Leo answered

 **They might be a problem.**

"Yes, Percy, Hephaestus kids would be a problem" Leo smirked

 **That, of course, left Ares cabin: a dozen of the biggest, ugliest, meanest kids on Long Island, or anywhere else on the planet.**

"Biggest, yes. Meanest, yes. Ugliest? Not all of them" Jess said "The Ares guy I dated, looked handsome"

Alex scowled at that which caused Nick to bit back a laugh

 **Chiron hammered his hoof on the marble.**

 **"Heroes!" he announced. "You know the rules. The creek is the boundary line. The entire forest is fair game. All magic items are allowed. The banner must be prominently displayed, and have no more than two guards. Prisoners may be disarmed, but may not be bound or gagged. No killing or maiming is allowed.**

"Hear that, Trina? No maiming!" Nick glared at the girl

"I already apologized for that" she said though she was trying hard not to laugh at the memory

 **I will serve as referee and battlefield medic. Arm yourselves!"**

 **He spread his hands, and the tables were suddenly covered with equipment: helmets, bronze swords, spears, oxhide shields coated in metal.**

 **"Whoa," I said. "Were really supposed to use these?"**

"What else would you want to use? Plastic swords?!" Reyna asked

 **Luke looked at me as if I were crazy. "Unless you want to get skewered by your friends in cabin five. Here—Chiron thought these would fit. You'll be on border patrol. "**

 **My shield was the size of an NBA backboard, with a big caduceus in the middle. It weighed about a million pounds. I could have snowboarded on it fine, but I hoped nobody seriously expected me to run fast. My helmet, like all the helmets on Athena's side, had a blue horsehair plume on top. Ares and their allies had red plumes.**

 **Annabeth yelled, "Blue team, forward!"**

 **We cheered and shook our swords and followed her down the path to the south woods. The red team yelled taunts at us as they headed off toward the north.**

 **I managed to catch up with Annabeth without tripping over my equipment. "Hey. "**

"Awwww" Amythyst and Jessy cooed "You want to catch up with her"

 **She kept marching.**

"Ouch" Jessy winced "Rejection"

 **"So what's the plan?" I asked. "Got any magic items you can loan me?"**

 **Her hand drifted toward her pocket, as if she were afraid I'd stolen something.**

"I thought you were a son of Hermes"

 **"Just watch Clarisse's spear," she said. "You don't want that thing touching you. Otherwise, don't worry. Well take the banner from Ares. Has Luke given you your job?"**

 **"Border patrol, whatever that means. "**

 **"Its easy. Stand by the creek, keep the red's away. Leave the rest to me. Athena always has a plan. "**

"Always. Always. Always" Amythyst sing songed "She even has our meals planned at home"

 **She pushed ahead, leaving me in the dust.**

 **"Okay," I mumbled. "Glad you wanted me on your team. "**

Annabeth smiled at him and kissed his cheek, while Percy wrapped his arms around her

 **It was a warm, sticky night. The woods were dark, with fireflies popping in and out of view. Annabeth stationed me next to a little creek that gurgled over some rocks, then she and the rest of the team scattered into the trees.**

 **Standing there alone, with my big blue-feathered helmet and my huge shield, I felt like an idiot.**

Thalia snorted at this

 **The bronze sword, like all the swords I'd tried so far, seemed balanced wrong. The leather grip pulled on my hand like a bowling ball.**

 **There was no way anybody would actually attack me, would they? I mean, Olympus had to have liability issues, right?**

The demigods snorted at this

 **Far away, the conch horn blew. I heard whoops and yells in the woods, the clanking of metal, kids fighting. A blue-plumed ally from Apollo raced past me like a deer, leaped through the creek, and disappeared into enemy territory.**

 **Great, I thought. I'll miss all the fun, as usual.**

 **Then I heard a sound that sent a chill up my spine, a low canine growl, somewhere close by.**

 **I raised my shield instinctively; I had the feeling something was stalking me.**

"Because something really was stalking you" Grover whispered

 **Then the growling stopped. I felt the presence retreating.**  
 **  
On the other side of the creek, the underbrush exploded. Five Ares warriors came yelling and screaming out of the dark.**

Trina gasped in realization 'that was the reason why Annabeth had wanted Percy to be on her team' she thought ****

 **"Cream the punk!" Clarisse screamed.**

 **Her ugly pig eyes glared through the slits of her helmet. She brandished a five-foot-long spear, its barbed metal tip flickering with red light. Her siblings had only the standard-issue bronze swords—not that that made me feel any better.**

 **They charged across the stream. There was no help in sight. I could run. Or I could defend myself** **again** **st half the Ares cabin.**

 ****"Or you could just step in the creak and kick their butts" Grover told Percy

 **I managed to sidestep the first kids swing, but these guys were not as stupid as the Minotaur. They surrounded me, and Clarisse thrust at me with her spear. My shield deflected the point, but I felt a painful tingling all over my body. My hair stood on end. My shield arm went numb, and the air burned.**

 **Electricity. Her stupid spear was electric. I fell back.**

'I wonder how I could make a weapon like that' Leo thought and started tinkering with his tools ****

**Another Ares guy slammed me in the chest with the butt of his sword and I hit the dirt.**

 **They could've** **kicked** **me into jelly, but they were too busy laughing.**

 **"Give him a haircut," Clarisse said. "Grab his hair. "**

 **I managed to get to my feet. I raised my sword, but Clarisse slammed it aside with her spear as sparks flew. Now both my arms felt numb.  
"Oh, wow," Clarisse said. "I'm scared of this guy. Really scared. "**

 **"The flag is that way," I told her. I wanted to sound angry, but I was afraid it didn't come out that way.**

 ****"They don't want the flag. They want revenge, on you" Trina told Percy frowning

 **"Yeah," one of her siblings said. "But see, we don't care** **about** **the flag. We care** **about** **a guy who made our cabin look stupid. "**

 **"You do that without my help," I told them. It probably wasn't the smartest thing to say.**

 ****"You think?" Rachel scoffed

 **Two of them came at me. I backed up toward the creek,**

"Yes, you go do that" Trina smiled

 **tried to raise my shield, but Clarisse was too fast. Her spear stuck me** **straight** **in the ribs. If I hadn't been wearing an armored breastplate, I would've been shish-ke-babbed. As it was, the electric point just** **about** **shocked my teeth out of my mouth. One of her cabin mates slashed his sword across my arm, leaving a good-size cut.**

"HEY!" almost everyone screamed ****

 **Seeing my own blood made me dizzy—warm and cold at the same time.**

 **"No maiming," I managed to say.**

 **"Oops," the guy said. "Guess I lost my dessert privilege.**

 ****"Seriously?! That's all the punishment you've got!?" Reyna exclaimed and was muttering on how she could convince Chiron to start giving out other punishments

 **He pushed me into the creek and I landed with a splash. They all laughed. I figured as soon as they were through being amused, I would die. But then something happened. The water seemed to wake up my senses, as if I'd just had a bag of my moms double-espresso jelly beans.**

 **Clarisse and her cabin mates came into the creek to get me, but I stood to meet them. I knew what to do. I swung the flat of my sword** **again** **st the first guys head and knocked his helmet clean off. I hit him so hard I could see his eyes vibrating as he crumpled into the water.**

Percy's daughters cheered and high five'd each other "That's our dad!" they proudly said

 **Ugly Number Two and Ugly Number Three came at me. I slammed one in the face with my shield and used my sword to shear off the other guys horsehair plume. Both of them backed up quick. Ugly Number Four didn't look really anxious to attack, but Clarisse kept coming, the point of her spear crackling with energy. As soon as she thrust, I caught the shaft between the edge of my shield and my sword, and I snapped it like a twig.**

"That's for being so mean" Amythyst said

 **"Ah!" she screamed. "You idiot! You corpse-breath worm!"**

"Corpse-breath worm should be Nico" Will said

 **She probably would've said** **worse** **, but I smacked her between the eyes with my sword-butt and sent her stumbling backward out of the creek.**

 **Then I heard yelling, elated screams, and I saw Luke racing toward the boundary line with the red teams banner lifted high. He was flanked by a couple of Hermes guys covering his retreat, and a few Apollos behind them, fighting off the Hephaestus kids. The Ares folks got up, and Clarisse muttered a dazed curse.**

 **"A trick!" she shouted. "It was a trick. "**

"A plan worthy of Athena" Trina whispered to herself shaking her head and looking at Annabeth

 **They staggered after Luke, but it was too late. Everybody converged on the creek as Luke ran across into friendly territory. Our side exploded into cheers. The red banner shimmered and turned to silver. The boar and spear were replaced with a huge caduceus, the symbol of cabin eleven. Everybody on the blue team picked up Luke and started carrying him around on their shoulders. Chiron cantered out from the woods and blew the conch horn.**

"You let him win" Trina looked at Annabeth. She was about to say more but Will continued reading

 **The game was over. We'd won.**

 **I was** **about** **to join the celebration when Annabeth's voice, right next to me in the creek, said, "Not bad, hero. "**

 **I looked, but she wasn't there.**

 **"Where the heck did you learn to fight like that?" she asked. The air shimmered, and she materialized, holding a Yankees baseball cap as if she'd just taken it off her head.**

"Because she did" Thalia said remembering Annabeth's cap

 **I felt myself getting angry. I wasn't even fazed by the fact that she'd just been invisible. "You set me up," I said. "You put me here because you knew Clarisse would come after me, while you sent Luke around the flank. You had it all figured out. "**

Amythyst and Trina's eyes were as wide as saucers, they didn't know about this at all. Their parents never told them about this, then again they didn't know about Gabe either. ****

**Annabeth shrugged. "I told you. Athena always, always has a plan. "**

At this time Amythyst was already frowning at Annabeth

 **"A plan to get me pulverized. "**

 **"I came as fast as I could. I was** **about** **to jump in, but . . . " She shrugged. "You didn't need help. "**

"You almost got him killed" Amythyst told Annabeth "You almost got daddy killed"

"Amy…." Trina tried to stop her knowing where this was heading

"I'm officially mad at you, Annabeth Chase" the eleven year old crossed her arms and scowled at Annabeth

"I thought you were calling her, Annabeth Jackson?" Thalia asked who then received a glare from Annabeth

'Sorry' she mouthed at her gray eyed friend

"No. I'm mad at her. You almost got a demigod pulverized just to win a game?!" the eleven year old continued "You don't always have to win. Winning is pointless if someone will get hurt in the process."

"I had a plan" Annabeth started

"A good plan actually, but it was a mean plan" Amythyst told her still scowling

"I was going to jump in and help him" Annabeth tried telling her

"What if you didn't get there in time? What if there wasn't a creak? You were mean!"

Everyone looked back and forth between the two not really knowing what to say and do. Annabeth was speechless at first, there was an awkward silence. It was so silent that they could almost hear each other breathing.

"I'm sorry" Annabeth finally said "You're right. That was mean of me"

Percy knelt next to Amythyst who was still frowning at Annabeth "Are you still mad at her? I'm fine! See? We we're kids. She was twelve. She thought it was okay at that time. But she wouldn't be putting me in any danger now, Annabeth's got my back and everyone else's back always" he told her and everyone nodded remembering the times when Annabeth thought of a plan to help or protect them

"I wasn't really mad, I was just disappointed" the little girl responded bowing her head

"She sounds like a parent about to ground her child" Jess whispered to Nick

"Shhh" Nick whispered back

"I really am sorry" Annabeth told her and knelt next to Percy

Amythyst looked at Annabeth and smiled "Okay. We're good" she hugged Annabeth and kissed her cheek

Annabeth was shocked at the gesture but she smiled anyway and went back to her seat, and so did Percy.

 **Then she noticed my wounded arm. "How did you do that?"**

"Get his arm wounded?" Hazel asked confused ****

 **"Sword cut," I said. "What do you think?"**

 **"No. It was a sword cut. Look at it. "**

 **The blood was gone. Where the huge cut had been, there was a long white scratch, and even that was fading. As I watched, it turned into a small scar, and disappeared.**

 **"I—I don't get it," I said.**

"That is amazing" Piper commented ****

 **Annabeth was thinking hard. I could almost see the gears turning. She looked down at my feet, then at Clarisse's broken spear, and said, "Step out of the water,** **Percy** **. "**

"ohhhhh" Everyone muttered in realization of what Annabeth had been thinking ****

**"What—"**

 **"Just do it. "**

 **I came out of the creek and immediately felt bone tired. My arms started to go numb** **again** **. My adrenaline rush left me. I almost fell over, but Annabeth steadied me.**

 **"Oh, Styx," she cursed. "This is not good. I didn't want . . . I assumed it would be Zeus. . . . "**

At this her daughters frowned at Annabeth again

"This is in the past" Annabeth waved them off "I'm sorry"

 **Before I could ask what she meant, I heard that canine growl** **again** **, but much closer than before. A howl ripped through the forest.**

 **The campers cheering died instantly. Chiron shouted something in Ancient** **Greek** **,** **which** **I would realize, only later, I had understood perfectly: "Stand ready! My bow!"**

 **Annabeth drew her sword.**

 ****"I thought you used a dagger?" Piper asked

"I had a sword that time"

 **There on the rocks just above us was a black hound the size of a rhino, with lava-red eyes and fangs like daggers.**

"Someone summoned that" Calypso said

 **It was looking** **straight** **at me.**

"Was especially summoned for Percy" Reyna said

 **Nobody moved except Annabeth, who yelled, "** **Percy** **, run!"**

 **She tried to step in front of me, but the hound was too fast. It leaped over her—an enormous shadow with teeth—and just as it hit me, as I stumbled backward and felt its razor-sharp claws ripping through my armor, there was a cascade of thwacking sounds, like forty pieces of paper being ripped one after the other. From the hounds neck sprouted a cluster of arrows. The monster fell dead at my feet.**

 **By some miracle, I was still alive. I didn't want to look underneath the ruins of my shredded armor. My chest felt warm and wet, and I knew I was badly cut. Another second, and the monster would've turned me into a hundred pounds of delicatessen meat.**

 **Chiron trotted up next to us, a bow in his hand, his face grim.**

 **"Di immortales!" Annabeth said. "That's a hellhound from the Fields of Punishment. They don't . . . they're not supposed to . . . "**

 **"Someone summoned it," Chiron said. "Someone inside the camp. "**

"Gee, I wonder who could've done that" Thalia said sarcastically

 **Luke came over, the banner in his hand forgotten, his moment of glory gone.**

"Serves him right" Nico scoffed

 **Clarisse yelled, "Its all** **Percy** **s fault!** **Percy** **summoned it!"**

"How could that have been his fault?" Frank asked

 **"Be quiet, child," Chiron told her.**

"Yes. Be quiet indeed" Calypso agreed

 **We watched the body of the hellhound melt into shadow, soaking into the ground until it disappeared.**

 **"You're wounded," Annabeth told me. "Quick,** **Percy** **, get in the water. "**

 **"I'm okay. "**

 **"No, you're not," she said. "Chiron, watch this. "**

 **I was too tired to argue. I stepped back into the creek, the whole camp gathering around me.**

 **Instantly, I felt better. I could feel the cuts on my chest closing up. Some of the campers gasped.**

 **"Look, I—I don't know why," I said, trying to apologize. "I'm sorry. . . . "**

"Why do you keep on apologizing!? you aren't even doing anything wrong!" Everyone screamed at Percy ****

 **But they weren't watching my wounds heal. They were staring at something above my head.**

 **"** **Percy** **," Annabeth said, pointing. "Um . . . "**

 **By the time I looked up, the sign was already fading, but I could still make out the hologram of green light, spinning and gleaming. A three-tipped spear: a trident.**

 **"Your** **father** **," Annabeth murmured. "This is really not good. "**

One of her daughters pouted and the other had a frown on her face

 **"It is determined," Chiron announced.**

 **All around me, campers started kneeling, even the Ares cabin, though they didn't look happy** **about** **it.**

"Its standard protocol" Thalia said

"Or tradition" Grover added

 **"My** **father** **?" I asked, completely bewildered.**

 **"Poseidon," said Chiron. "Earthshaker, Stormbringer,** **Father** **of Horses. Hail, Perseus** **Jackson** **, Son of the Sea God. "**

"Hail, Daddy! Son of Grandpa" Amythyst announced laughing

"She's so bubbly" Rachel commented

"She's always happy and optimistic" Trina added smiling "kind of why everyone adores her"

"That's the end of the Chapter. Your turn" Will said as he handed the book to Alex

 **Hello guys! It' s been a while since I last updated. How do you guys like this one? Do you like it? Love it? Think it needs improvement? Tell me in a review!**

 **Oh and thanks a million to everyone who reviewed last time! It really means a lot :)**

 **Also, please do check out my other story: The joy of babysitting :) thanks a million!**

 **xoxo**

 **Chinfev1203**


	13. Chapter 9: Alex

**9\. I AM OFFERED A** **QUEST** Alex read

 **The next morning, Chiron moved me to cabin three.**

 **I didn't have to share with anybody. I had plenty of room for all my stuff: the Minotaur's horn, one set of spare clothes, and a toiletry bag.**

"You have a whole cabin to yourself but not enough stuff"

"Back then sometimes I wished I was back in the Hermes Cabin, at least I had a lot of people with me"

 **I got to sit at my own dinner table, pick all my own activities, call "lights out" whenever I felt like it, and not listen to anybody else.**

"That sounds lonely" Nick said

"It is" Jason and Percy agreed

 **And I was absolutely miserable.**

Percy sighed remembering how that felt like, to finally feel at home and then suddenly got tossed to Cabin three like everyone should be avoiding him at all costs.

 **Just when I'd started to feel accepted, to feel I had a home in cabin eleven and I might be a normal kid—or as normal as you can be when you're a half-blood—I'd been separated out as if I had some rare disease.**

"Do you though?" Will asked "Maybe I should give you a check up later"

"No, I'm good"

"I think he still needs a check up" Alex agreed with Will

"The three of us can give him a check up" Nick added

"No thanks guys, I'm good, Really" Percy assured them

 **Nobody mentioned the hellhound, but I got the feeling they were all talking** **about** **it behind my back.**

"A lot of campers kind of were talking about it" Grover said

 **The attack had scared everybody.**

"Most were just scared of you"

 **It sent two messages: one, that I was the son of the Sea God; and two,** **monsters** **would stop at nothing to kill me. They could even invade a camp that had always been considered safe.**

"Technically someone summoned it"

 **The other campers steered clear of me as much as possible. Cabin eleven was too nervous to have sword class with me after what I'd done to the Ares folks in the woods,**

"and also because of how you managed to beat Luke" Grover told Percy

 **so my lessons with Luke became one-on-one. He pushed me harder than ever, and wasn't afraid to bruise me up in the process.**

"He probably enjoyed that" Thalia told him scowling

 **"You're going to need all the training you can get," he promised, as we were working with swords and flaming torches. "Now lets try that viper-beheading strike** **again** **. Fifty more repetitions. "**

"Seriously?" Nick asked 'This guy was harsh' he thought

 **Annabeth still taught me** **Greek** **in the mornings, but she seemed distracted. Every time I said something, she scowled at me, as if I'd just poked her between the eyes.**

"I don't like hearing how mean mommy was to daddy, can I go to sleep?" Amythyst asked her older sister

"Want to sleep on my lap?" she asked Amy

"Yes please" she went over and placed her head in her sisters lap and her feet on Josh's lap

 **After lessons, she would walk away muttering to herself: "** **Quest** **. . . Poseidon? . . . Dirty rotten . . . Got to make a plan . . . "**

Everyone looked at Annabeth smirking

 **Even Clarisse's kept her distance, though her venomous looks made it clear she wanted to kill me for breaking her magic spear. I wished she would just yell or punch me or something. I'd rather get into fights every day than be ignored.**

"I'd always prefer getting into a fight than being ignored" Percy muttered

"It's a good thing Amy's asleep, she wouldn't like that at all" Trina told him stroking her little sisters hair

 **I knew somebody at camp resented me, because one night I came into my cabin and found a mortal newspaper dropped inside the doorway,**

"Probably someone from the Hermes Cabin" Jason said

"Probably Luke" Nico said

 **a copy of the New York Daily News, opened to the Metro page. The article took me almost an hour to read, because the angrier I got, the more the words floated around on the page.**

 **BOY AND MOTHER STILL MISSING AFTER**

 **FREAK CAR ACCIDENT**

 **BY EILEEN SMYTHE**

 **Sally** **Jackson** **and son** **Percy** **are still missing one week after their mysterious disappearance. The family's badly burned 78 Camaro**

"So much for not leaving a scratch" Leo smirked

 **was discovered last Saturday on a north Long Island road with the roof ripped off and the front axle broken. The car had flipped and skidded for several hundred feet before exploding.**

 **·** **1** **Mother and son had gone for a weekend vacation to Montauk, but left hastily, under mysterious circumstances. Small traces of blood were found in the car and near the scene of the wreck, but there were no other signs of the missing Jackson's. Residents in the rural area reported seeing nothing unusual around the time of the accident.**

· ""Of course they didn't , the mist worked its magic" Hazel said

·

 **Ms. Jackson's husband, Gabe Ugliano, claims that his stepson, Percy Jackson, is a troubled child who has been kicked out of numerous boarding schools and has expressed violent tendencies in the past.**

 **·**

· " "Kicked out, yes. But, Violent tendencies? I think he's describing himself at that point" Percy muttered frowning

 **Police would not say whether son Percy is a suspect in his mothers disappearance, but they have not ruled out foul play.**

 **·** **P** Percy frowned even more and hugged Annabeth 'Gabe made everything worse' he thought

 **·**

 **·** **Below are recent pictures of Sally Jackson and Percy. Police urge anyone with information to call the following toll-free crime-stoppers hotline.**

 **The phone number was circled in black marker.**

"They couldn't have called anyways, demigods can't have phones" Jason said

"Not anymore" Jessy said bringing out her phone and waving it for everyone to see "Monster safe phone"

"How?" Everyone asked

"Uncle Leo, and a few other demigods from Hephaestus and Hermes cabin helped make this one" she explained

"They sell it at Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter" Josh added "Though we can buy phones outside camp and have it fixed at Camp to make it monster safe"

"You already had it selling way before we were even born" Trina said

"Can I see? Can I see?" Leo asked jumping up and down in excitement

Jess tossed him her phone, and Josh, Trina, Amy, Nick, and Alex brought out their phones as well for the others to see

"Though right now it wont work properly, I tried to send a text or make a call when we first got here, but it wont work" Jessy said

"I can't take photos either" Josh added "the fates probably have something to do with that"

The phones of the future children got passed around to the demigods

"You have two phones?" Jason asked Jessy

"Nope. Just one, the one with the pink phone case. Why?"

"Then whose phone is this, with your picture as a background?" he asked holding up the phone for her to see.

"That's mine actually" Alex said and getting up to retrieve his phone and stashing it back in his pocket

Jessy was silent for a while and was starring at the floor

"We better get back to reading" Will told Alex who picked up the book again and resumed reading

 **I wadded up the paper and threw it away, then flopped down in my bunk bed in the middle of my empty cabin.**

"You were there so its not totally empty" Frank told Percy

 **"Lights out," I told myself miserably.**

 **·** "That's so sad" Jessy said "I'm so glad I have a twin"

"Love you too, Sis" Her brother coming over to her to kiss her cheek

· ''They really are so close' Piper and Jason thought

 **·**

 **·**

 **That night, I had my worst dream yet.**

· I "Is that still your worse dream?" Piper asked

· ""Nope"

 **·**

 **·**

 **I was running along the beach in a storm. This time, there was a city behind me. Not New York. The sprawl was different: buildings spread farther apart, palm trees and low hills in the distance.**

 **·** "Los Angeles?" Piper asked

 **About a hundred yards down the surf, two men were fighting. They looked like TV wrestlers, muscular, with beards and long hair. Both wore flowing Greek tunics, one trimmed in blue, the other in green. They grappled with each other, wrestled, kicked and head-butted, and every time they connected, lightning flashed, the sky grew darker, and the wind rose.**

 **·** ""Jupiter and Neptune are fighting again" Hazel commented

· "Why do they look like wrestlers though?" Rachel asked

· ""That's just Percy's imagination" Annabeth said

 **·** "

 **I had to stop them. I didn't know why. But the harder I ran, the more the wind blew me back, until I was running in place, my heels digging uselessly in the sand.**

 **·**

"Not Cool" Alex muttered

 **·**

 **Over the roar of the storm, I could hear the blue-robed one yelling at the green-robed one, Give it back! Give it back! Like a kindergartner fighting over a toy.**

· TThe Grace kids laughed and shook their heads at Zeus

· J

 **The waves got bigger, crashing into the beach, spraying me with salt.**

 **I yelled, Stop it! Stop fighting!**

 **The ground shook. Laughter came from somewhere under the earth, and a voice so deep and evil it turned my blood to ice.**

 **Come down, little hero, the voice crooned. Come down!**

 **·** ""Pluto?" Frank asked

· "I wish" Percy replied

· ""And besides, Hades isn't evil" Nico told them

· "

· :

 **·**

 **The sand split beneath me, opening up a crevice straight down to the center of the earth. My feet slipped, and darkness swallowed me.**

 **I woke up, sure I was falling.**

 **I was still in bed in cabin three. My body told me it was morning, but it was dark outside, and thunder rolled across the hills. A storm was brewing. I hadn't dreamed that.**

 **·** ""Yes you did" Everyone chorused

 **·**

 **I heard a clopping sound at the door, a hoof knocking on the threshold.**

 **·** "Chiron?" Reyna asked

"Nope" Grover answered remembering that it was him who was knocking

· "

 **"Come in?"**

 **Grover trotted inside, looking worried. "Mr. D wants to see you. "**

 **"Why?"**

 **"He wants to kill. . . I mean, I'd better let him tell you. "**

 **·** ""GROVER!"

· ""Sorry! But I was nervous!"

 **·**

 **·** **g**

 **Nervously, I got dressed and followed, sure that I was in huge trouble.**

 **For days, I'd been half expecting a summons to the Big House. Now that I was declared a son of Poseidon, one of the Big Three gods who weren't supposed to have kids, I figured it was a crime for me just to be alive.**

 **·** "I know exactly how you feel" Thalia muttered

 **·** **TThe other gods had probably been debating the best way to punish me for existing, and now Mr. D was ready to deliver their verdict.**

 **Over Long Island Sound, the sky looked like ink soup coming to a boil. A hazy curtain of rain was coming in our direction. I asked Grover if we needed an umbrella.**

 **"No," he said. "It never rains here unless we want it to. "**

 **·** ""Or unless these two lovebirds are fighting" Nick pointed to Josh and Trina who smacked him upside the head, well… Trina smacked him upside the head and told Alex to continue reading

 **·**

 **I pointed at the storm. "What the heck is that, then?"**

 **He glanced uneasily at the sky. "It'll pass around us. Bad weather always does. "** Percy sighed remembering that at that time the bad weather didn't pass. That it rained at camp even though it wasn't supposed to rain there at all, and it was all because of him.

· P

 **I realized he was right. In the week I'd been here, it had never even been overcast. The few rain clouds I'd seen had skirted right around the edges of the valley.**

 **But this storm . . . this one was huge.**

 **At the volleyball pit, the kids from Apollos cabin were playing a morning game against the satyrs. Dionysus's twins were walking around in the strawberry fields, making the plants grow. Everybody was going about their normal business, but they looked tense. They kept their eyes on the storm.**

 **·**

"That storm scared everyone" Grover told them

 **·**

 **Grover and I walked up to the front porch of the Big House. Dionysus sat at the pinochle table in his tiger-striped Hawaiian shirt with his Diet Coke, just as he had on my first day. Chiron sat across the table in his fake wheelchair. They were playing against invisible opponents-two sets of cards hovering in the air.**

 **"Well, well," Mr. D said without looking up. "Our little celebrity. "**

 **I waited. . . . . . . . . .**

 **"Come closer," Mr. D said. "And don't expect me to bow down to you, mortal, just because old Barnacle-Beard is your father. "**

 **·**

"So can we call Percy, Barnacle-Beard Jr?" Leo asked

· ""Trina, can be Barnacle-Beard the third" Alex laughed which earned him a glare from the said girl

"Amy's the fourth" Nick added laughing

"I heard that!" Amy screamed yawning and stretching

"Hey your awake" Trina said "How was your nap?"

"I had a dream about wrestlers" she answered yawning

· "

 **A net of lightning flashed across the clouds. Thunder shook the windows of the house.**

 **"Blah, blah, blah," Dionysus said.**

 **Chiron feigned interest in his pinochle cards. Grover cowered by the railing, his hooves clopping back and forth.**

 **"If I had my way," Dionysus said, "I would cause your molecules to erupt in flames. We'd sweep up the ashes and be done with a lot of trouble. But Chiron seems to feel this would be against my mission at this cursed camp: to keep you little brats safe from harm. "**

 **·** "And he didn't have his way, which is a good thing, he might have turned all us into ashes" Annabeth said

 **"Spontaneous combustion is a form of harm, Mr. D," Chiron put in.**

 **"Nonsense," Dionysus said. "Boy wouldn't feel a thing. Nevertheless, I've agreed to restrain myself, I'm thinking of turning you into a dolphin instead, sending you back to your father. "**

 **·** ""Yes, then Poseidon would just turn him back to normal" Calypso said

· ""Besides, its not like Percy hasn't been turned into something else before, right Annabeth?" Reyna commented smirking at Annabeth remembering when Percy had been turned into a guinea pig at C.C's spa and resort

· "

 **"Mr. D—" Chiron warned.**

 **"Oh, all right," Dionysus relented. "There's one more option. But its deadly foolishness. " Dionysus rose, and the invisible players cards dropped to the table. "I'm off to Olympus for the emergency meeting. If the boy is still here when I get back, I'll turn him into an Atlantic bottlenose.**

 **·** ""What's that?" Nick asked

· ""Well…it's a" Percy started but got interrupted by Amythyst who told Alex to read or else it would take them the whole day discussing about the Atlantic bottlenose

 **·**

 **·** **Do you understand? And Perseus Jackson, if you're at all smart,**

 **·** **T** Thalia snorted and then received a glare from Percy

· **You'll see that's a much more sensible choice than what Chiron feels you must do."**

 **·** ""How is that more sensible than a quest?" Leo asked he was pretty sure any demigod would rather take a quest than be turned to anything else

 **Dionysus picked up a playing card, twisted it, and it became a plastic rectangle. A credit card? No. A security pass.**

 **He snapped his fingers.**

 **The air seemed to fold and bend around him. He became a hologram, then a wind, then he was gone, leaving only the smell of fresh-pressed grapes lingering behind.**

 **Chiron smiled at me, but he looked tired and strained. "Sit, Percy, please. And Grover. "**

 **We did.**

"It's not like we had much of a choice" Grover muttered

 **Chiron laid his cards on the table, a winning hand he hadn't gotten to use.**

 **"Tell me, Percy," he said. "What did you make of the hellhound?"**

"He really is a teacher" Hazel said

 **Just hearing the name made me shudder.**

 **·** "But now you have a pet hellhound" Nico said remembering Mrs. O leary

 **Chiron probably wanted me to say, Heck, it was nothing. I eat hellhound's for breakfast. But I didn't feel like lying.**

"I don't think Mrs. O leary would like that" Annabeth told Percy

· "How would you even eat a hellhound anyway? Monsters turn to ashes as soon as you kill em" Leo said

 **·**

 **"It scared me," I said. "If you hadn't shot it, I'd be dead. "**

 **"You'll meet worse, Percy. Far worse, before you're done. "**

 **"Done . . . with what?"**

 **"Your quest, of course. Will you accept it?"**

"He hasn't even told him about the quest yet, and now he wants him to accept it" Piper said shaking her head at Chiron. At least when she went on a quest, she had known what it was about and have heard the prophecy before she accepted it.

 **I glanced at Grover, who was crossing his fingers.**

 **"Um, sir," I said, "you haven't told me what it is yet. "**

· "

"See?" Piper said

 **Chiron grimaced. "Well, that's the hard part, the details. "**

 **Thunder rumbled across the valley. The storm clouds had now reached the edge of the beach. As far as I could see, the sky and the sea were boiling together.**

 **"Poseidon and Zeus," I said. "They're fighting over something valuable . . . something that was stolen, aren't they?".**

 **Chiron and Grover exchanged looks.**

 **Chiron sat forward in his wheelchair. "How did you know that?"**

 **My face felt hot. I wished I hadn't opened my big mouth. "The weather since Christmas has been weird, like the sea and the sky are fighting. Then I talked to Annabeth, and she'd overheard something about a theft. And . . . I've also been having these dreams. "**

 **·** ""Aww you remembered what Annabeth said" Piper cooed shocking everyone. It didn't really seem like Piper at all. Maybe her daughter was getting to her, everyone thought.

· "I think its wise for everyone to always remember what Annabeth said" Rachel told her

 **"I knew it," Grover said.**

 **"Hush, satyr," Chiron ordered.**

 **"But it is his quest!" Grover's eyes were bright with excitement. "It must be!"**

 **"Only the Oracle can determine. " Chiron stroked his bristly beard.**

 **·** "That's got to make Chiron look old and wise" Thalia commented

· ""Well…. he is old and Wise" said Annabeth

· " **"Nevertheless, Percy, you are correct. Your father and Zeus are having their worst quarrel in centuries. They are fighting over something valuable that was stolen. To be precise: a lightning bolt. "**

 **I laughed nervously. "A what?"**

 **"Do not take this lightly," Chiron warned. "I'm not talking about some tinfoil-covered zigzag you'd see in a second-grade play. I'm talking about a two-foot-long cylinder of high-grade celestial bronze, capped on both ends with god-level explosives. "**

 **"Oh. "**

"All you had to say was 'Oh'" Jason asked him

· " "Didn't have anything else to say" Percy answered shrugging

 **·**

 **"Zeus's master bolt," Chiron said, getting worked up now. "The symbol of his power, from which all other lightning bolts are patterned. The first weapon made by the Cyclopes for the war against the Titans, the bolt that sheered the top off Mount Etna and hurled Kronos from his throne; the master bolt, which packs enough power to make mortal hydrogen bombs look like firecrackers. "**

 **"And its missing?"**

 **"Stolen," Chiron said.**

 **"By who?"**

 **"By whom," Chiron corrected. Once a teacher, always a teacher.**

 **·** **A** Annabeth smiled remembering whenever Chiron would act like a teacher, which was pretty much all the time.

· **"By you. "**

"WHAT?" Leo, Piper, Jason, Calypso, Frank, Hazel, Reyna, Nick and Alex asked

"How could he have possible stolen that?"

"He didn't even know he was a demigod till a week before that!"

"He didn't even know where Olympus was!"

"Okay guys, calm down" Percy told them

 **My mouth fell open.**

 **"At least"—Chiron held up a hand—"that's what Zeus thinks. During the winter solstice, at the last council of the gods, Zeus and Poseidon had an argument. The usual nonsense: Mother Rhea always liked you best,**

"They sound like kids" Hazel said shaking her head

 **Air disasters are more spectacular than sea disasters, et cetera. Afterward, Zeus realized his master bolt was missing, taken from the throne room under his very nose. He immediately blamed Poseidon. Now, a god cannot usurp another gods symbol of power directly—that is forbidden by the most ancient of divine laws. But Zeus believes your father convinced a human hero to take it. "**

 **"But I didn't—"**

 **"Patience and listen, child," Chiron said.**

"Really like a teacher" Reyna said

 **"Zeus has good reason to be suspicious. The forges of the Cyclopes are under the ocean, which gives Poseidon some influence over the makers of his brothers lightning. Zeus believes Poseidon has taken the master bolt, and is now secretly having the Cyclopes build an arsenal of illegal copies, which might be used to topple Zeus from his throne. The only thing Zeus wasn't sure about was which hero Poseidon used to steal the bolt. Now Poseidon has openly claimed you as his son. You were in New York over the winter holidays. You could easily have snuck into Olympus. Zeus believes he has found his thief. "**

 **"But I've never even been to Olympus! Zeus is crazy!"**

"Not Crazy" Thalia told Percy "Maybe just dramatic, and has irrational theories about who stole his precious bolt"

 **Chiron and Grover glanced nervously at the sky. The clouds didn't seem to be parting around us, as Grover had promised. They were rolling straight over our valley, sealing us in like a coffin lid.**

"Seriously that is so depressing when you say it like that" Jessy said

 **"Er, Percy . . . ?" Grover said. "We don't use the c-word to describe the Lord of the Sky. "**

 **"Perhaps paranoid," Chiron suggested.**

"How is that better than calling him crazy?" Calypso asked

 **"Then again, Poseidon has tried to unseat Zeus before. I believe that was question thirty-eight on your final exam. . . . " He looked at me as if he actually expected me to remember question thirty-eight.**

 **How could anyone accuse me of stealing a gods weapon? I couldn't even steal a slice of pizza from Gabe's poker party without getting busted.**

"And they thought you were a son of Hermes at first" Leo said

"Maybe you should spend more times with the Stoll's" Alex suggested

"You know the Stoll's" Percy asked

"I know their son's" Alex answered "I'm good friends with them actually"

"They have son's?!" the demigods of the past exclaimed shocked that the Stoll's actually fell in love and started their own family. The Stoll's that they knew only cared about pranking and stealing. Guess a lot of things do happen and change in the future

"Trevor, is Travis Stoll's son, and Casper is Connor Stoll's son, though Trevor has two sisters too" Josh explained

 **Chiron was waiting for an answer.**

 **"Something about a golden net?" I guessed. "Poseidon and Hera and a few other gods . . . they, like, trapped Zeus and wouldn't let him out until he promised to be a better ruler, right?"**

 **"Correct," Chiron said. "And Zeus has never trusted Poseidon since. Of course, Poseidon denies stealing the master bolt. He took great offense at the accusation. The two have been arguing back and forth for months, threatening war. And now, you've come along—the proverbial last straw. "**

 **"But I'm just a kid!"**

"Zeus doesn't really care about that" Calypso said

 **"** **Percy** **," Grover cut in, "if you were Zeus, and you already thought your brother was plotting to overthrow you, then your brother suddenly admitted he had broken the sacred oath he took after World War II, that he's** **father** **ed a new mortal hero who might be used as a weapon** **again** **st you. . . . Wouldn't that put a twist in your toga?"**

"You do have a point there, Grover" Reyna agreed with him

 **"But I didn't do anything. Poseidon—my dad—he didn't really have this** **master** **bolt** **stolen** **, did he?"**

 **Chiron sighed. "Most thinking observers would agree that thievery is not Poseidon's style. But the Sea God is too proud to try convincing Zeus of that. Zeus has demanded that Poseidon** **return** **the bolt by the summer solstice. That's June twenty-first, ten days from now. Poseidon wants an apology for being called a** **thief** **by the same date. I hoped that diplomacy might prevail, that Hera or Demeter or Hestia would make the two brothers see sense. But your arrival has inflamed Zeus's temper. Now neither god will back down. Unless someone intervenes, unless the** **master** **bolt is found and** **return** **ed to Zeus before the solstice, there will be war. And do you know what a full-fledged war would look like,** **Percy** **?"**

 **"Bad?" I guessed.**

"Very Very bad"

 **"Imagine the world in chaos. Nature at war with itself.** **Olympians** **forced to choose sides between Zeus and Poseidon. Destruction. Carnage. Millions dead. Western civilization turned into a battleground so big it will make the Trojan War look like a water-balloon fight. "**

 **"Bad," I repeated.**

"Really Bad"

"You two should never break up" Piper told Josh and Trina

"Why?" Hazel asked

"Jupiter and Poseidon. If those two broke up, I have a bad feeling that something like what Chiron describe would happen." Rachel explained in behalf of Piper who nodded at Rachel's explanation

"We will never break up" Josh said confidently and then kissing his girlfriend "Right?"

"Never. Ever" she responded smiling up to him

"Please read, Alex before these two decide to make out in front of us" Percy told him

"Protective daddy alert" Leo teased

"Shut up, Valdez"

 **"And you,** **Percy** **Jackson** **, would be the first to feel Zeus's wrath. "**

"Of course" Percy frowned

 **It started to rain. Volleyball players stopped their game and stared in stunned silence at the sky.**

 **I had brought this storm to Half-Blood Hill. Zeus was punishing the whole camp because of me. I was furious.**

"Oh no. Not good"

 **"So I have to find the stupid bolt," I said. "And** **return** **it to Zeus. "**

"Calling it stupid, is not going to help" Hazel said

 **"What better** **peace** **offering," Chiron said, "than to have the son of Poseidon** **return** **Zeus's** **property** **?"**

 **"If Poseidon doesn't have it, where is the thing?"**

 **"I believe I know. " Chiron's expression was grim. "Part of a prophecy I had years ago . . . well, some of the lines make sense to me, now. But before I can say more, you must officially take up the** **quest** **. You must seek the counsel of the** **Oracle** **. "**

"Why can't he just tell you?" Nick asked

"Because he's a teacher, and he wants him to figure it out first?" Hazel suggested

 **"Why cant you tell me where the bolt is beforehand?"**

 **"Because if I did, you would be too afraid to accept the challenge. "**

"Or that" said Hazel

 **I swallowed. "Good reason. "**

 **"You agree then?"**

 **I looked at Grover, who nodded encouragingly.**

 **Easy for him. I was the one Zeus wanted to kill.**

Everyone just couldn't help but laugh at this, they probably would have had the same thoughts to if it were them that Zeus had wanted to kill.

 **"All right," I said. "Its better than being turned into a dolphin. "**

"Totally!"

 **"Then its time you consulted the** **Oracle** **," Chiron said. "Go upstairs,** **Percy** **Jackson** **, to the attic. When you come back down, assuming you're still sane, we will talk more. "**

"Was the past oracle that bad?" Jason asked

"You'll see" Rachel answered

 **Four flights up, the stairs ended under a green trapdoor.**

"Maybe you shouldn't go in" Amy whispered

 **I pulled the cord. The door swung down, and a wooden ladder clattered into place.**

 **The warm air from above smelled like mildew and rotten wood and something else . . . a smell I remembered from biology class. Reptiles. The smell of snakes.**

"Another reason why you shouldn't go in. That's creepy"

 **I held my breath and climbed.**

 **The attic was filled with** **Greek** **hero junk: armor stands covered in cobwebs; once-bright shields pitted with rust; old leather steamer trunks plastered with stickers saying ITHAKA, CIRCES ISLE, and LAND OF THE AMAZONS. One long table was stacked with glass jars filled with pickled things—severed hairy claws, huge yellow eyes, various other parts of** **monsters** **.**

"EWWW"

 **A dusty** **mount** **ed trophy on the wall looked like a giant snakes head, but with horns and a full set of sharks teeth. The plaque read, HYDRA HEAD #1, WOODSTOCK, N. Y. , 1969.**

 **By the window, sitting on a wooden tripod stool, was the most gruesome memento of all: a mummy. Not the wrapped-in-cloth kind, but a human female body shriveled to a husk. She wore a tie-dyed sundress, lots of beaded necklaces, and a headband over long black hair. The skin of her face was thin and leathery over her skull, and her eyes were glassy white slits, as if the real eyes had been replaced by marbles; she'd been dead a long, long time.**

"THAT?! THAT WAS THE OLD ORACLE?!" Exclaimed by everyone who didn't know who or what the oracle was before Rachel.

"I'm so glad we have Rachel now" Piper muttered

"Thanks" the said Oracle replied

 **Looking at her sent chills up my back. And that was before she sat up on her stool and opened her mouth. A green mist poured from the mummy's mouth, coiling over the floor in thick tendrils, hissing like twenty thousand snakes. I stumbled over myself trying to get to the trapdoor, but it slammed shut. Inside my head, I heard a voice, slithering into one ear and coiling around my brain: I am the spirit of Delphi, speaker of the prophecies of Phoebus Apollo, slayer of the mighty Python. Approach, seeker, and ask.**

 **I wanted to say, No thanks, wrong door, just looking for the bathroom.**

Everyone laughed and agreed with Percy

 **But I forced myself to take a deep breath.**

 **The mummy wasn't alive. She was some kind of gruesome receptacle for something else,**

Percy remembered when he had a dream of Hades cursing the Oracle, why she had become a mummy in the first place.

 **the power that was now swirling around me in the green mist. But its presence didn't feel evil, like my demonic math teacher Mrs. Dodds or the Minotaur. It felt more like the Three Fates I'd seen knitting the yarn outside the highway fruit stand: ancient,** **powerful** **, and definitely not human. But not particularly interested in killing me, either.**

"That's good, right?"

 **I got up the courage to ask, "What is my destiny?"**

"To have to beautiful daughters who will annoy you everyday" Amy laughed

"and blackmail me" Percy added

"Yeah. That too" laughed Trina

 **The mist swirled more thickly, collecting right in front of me and around the table with the pickled monster-part jars. Suddenly there were four men sitting around the table, playing cards. Their faces became clearer. It was Smelly Gabe and his buddies.**

 **My fists clenched, though I knew this poker party couldn't be real. It was an illusion, made out of mist.**

 **Gabe turned toward me and spoke in the rasping voice of the** **Oracle** **: You shall go west, and face the god who has turned.**

 **His buddy on the right looked up and said in the same voice: You shall find what was** **stolen** **, and see it safely** **return** **ed.**

 **The guy on the left threw in two poker chips, then said: You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend.**

 **Finally, Eddie, our building super, delivered the worst line of all: And you shall fail to save what matters most, in the end.**

 **The figures began to dissolve. At first I was too stunned to say anything, but as the mist retreated, coiling into a huge green serpent and slithering back into the mouth of the mummy, I cried, "Wait! What do you mean? What friend? What will I fail to save?"**

"She's not going to answer that" Rachel said Even she didn't understand the prophecies that she has spoken

 **The tail of the mist snake disappeared into the mummy's mouth. She reclined back** **again** **st the wall. Her mouth closed tight, as if it hadn't been open in a hundred years. The attic was silent** **again** **,** **abandoned** **, nothing but a room full of mementos.**

 **I got the feeling that I could stand here until I had cobwebs, too, and I wouldn't learn anything else.**

 **My audience with the** **Oracle** **was over.**

 **"Well?" Chiron asked me.**

 **I slumped into a chair at the pinochle table. "She said I would retrieve what was** **stolen** **. "**

 **Grover sat forward, chewing excitedly on the remains of a Diet Coke can. "That's great!"**

 **"What did the** **Oracle** **say exactly?" Chiron pressed. "This is important. "**

 **My ears were still tingling from the reptilian voice. "She . . . she said I would go west and face a god who had turned. I would retrieve what was** **stolen** **and see it safely** **return** **ed. "**

 **"I knew it," Grover said. . . . .**

 **Chiron didn't look satisfied. "Anything else?"**

"He knew you were holding back information" Rachel said

"Can't really keep anything from Chiron" Annabeth said

"He got wiser and wiser through the years" Thalia added

"He pretty much knows everything" Grover said

"He even knows about my dating life" Nick grumbled

Trina and Jessy faced him and said "You have a dating life?!" they teased laughing

"Shut up"

 **I didn't want to tell him.**

 **What friend would betray me? I didn't have that many.**

 **And the last line—I would fail to save what mattered most. What kind of** **Oracle** **would send me on a** **quest** **and tell me, Oh, by the way, you'll fail**

 **How could I confess that?**

 **"No," I said. "That's** **about** **it. "**

"He knows your lying" Annabeth said

 **He studied my face. "Very well,** **Percy** **. But know this: the** **Oracle** **s words often have double meanings. Don't dwell on them too much. The truth is not always clear until events come to pass. "**

 **I got the feeling he knew I was holding back something bad, and he was trying to make me feel better.**

"See? Even you agree"

 **"Okay," I said, anxious to change topics. "So where do I go? Who's this god in the west?"**

 **"Ah, think,** **Percy** **," Chiron said.**

"That's him being a teacher again" Reyna Will said

 **"If Zeus and Poseidon weaken each other in a war, who stands to gain?"**

 **"Somebody else who wants to take over?" I guessed.**

 **"Yes, quite. Someone who harbors a grudge, who has been unhappy with his lot since the world was divided eons ago, whose kingdom would grow** **powerful** **with the deaths of millions. Someone who hates his brothers for forcing him into an oath to have no more children, an oath that both of them have now broken. "**

 **I thought** **about** **my dreams, the evil voice that had spoken from under the ground. "Hades. "**

"Sure. Blame it all on Hades" Nico grumbled annoyed

 **Chiron nodded. "The Lord of the Dead is the only possibility. "**

 **A scrap of aluminum dribbled out of Grover's mouth. "Whoa, wait. Wh-what?"**

 **"A Fury came after** **Percy** **," Chiron reminded him. "She watched the** **young** **man until she was sure of his identity, then tried to kill him. Furies obey only one lord: Hades. "**

"Yeah. But that doesn't mean he stole the bolt" Nico defended his father

 **"Yes, but—but Hades hates all heroes," Grover protested. "Especially if he has found out** **Percy** **is a son of Poseidon. . . . "**

 **"A hellhound got into the forest," Chiron continued. "Those can only be summoned from the Fields of Punishment, and it had to be summoned by someone within the camp. Hades must have a spy here. He must** **suspect** **Poseidon will try to use** **Percy** **to clear his name. Hades would very much like to kill this** **young** **half-blood before he can take on the** **quest** **. "**

 **"Great," I muttered. "That's two major gods who want to kill me. "**

"more would be added to that list actually" Percy said

 **"But a** **quest** **to . . . " Grover swallowed. "I mean, couldn't the** **master** **bolt be in some place like Maine? Maine's very nice this time of year. "**

"Oh Grover"

 **"Hades sent a minion to steal the** **master** **bolt," Chiron insisted. "He hid it in the Underworld, knowing full well that Zeus would blame Poseidon. I don't pretend to understand the Lord of the Dead's motives perfectly, or why he chose this time to start a war, but one thing is certain.** **Percy** **must go to the Underworld, find the** **master** **bolt, and reveal the truth. "**

 **A strange fire burned in my stomach. The weirdest thing was: it wasn't fear. It was anticipation. The desire for revenge. Hades had tried to kill me three times so far, with the Fury, the Minotaur, and the hellhound. It was his fault my mother had disappeared in a flash of light. Now he was trying to frame me and my dad for a theft we hadn't committed.**

 **I was ready to take him on.**

 **Besides, if my mother was in the Underworld . . .**

 **Whoa, boy, said the small part of my brain that was still sane. You're a kid. Hades is a god.**

 **Grover was trembling. He'd started eating pinochle cards like potato chips.**

"I'm hungry!" Grover whined

 **The poor guy needed to complete a** **quest** **with me so he could get his searchers license, whatever that was, but how could I ask him to do this** **quest** **, especially when the** **Oracle** **said I was destined to fail? This was suicide.**

 **"Look, if we know its Hades," I told Chiron, "why cant we just tell the other gods? Zeus or Poseidon could go down to the Underworld and bust some heads. "**

"Isn't that like a show?" Calypso asked "Hercules bust heads?"

"On Hephaestus TV" Annabeth answered her

 **"** **Suspect** **ing and knowing are not the same," Chiron said. "Besides, even if the other gods** **suspect** **Hades—and I imagine Poseidon does—they couldn't retrieve the bolt** **themselves** **. God's cannot cross each others territories except by invitation. That is another ancient rule. Heroes, on the other hand, have certain privileges. They can go anywhere, challenge anyone, as long as they're bold enough and strong enough to do it. No god can be held responsible for a hero's actions. Why do you think the gods always operate through humans?"**

 **"You're saying I'm being used. "**

"We all are" the demigods agreed

 **"I'm saying its no accident Poseidon has claimed you now. Its a very risky gamble, but he's in a desperate situation. He needs you. "**

 **My dad needs me.**

 **Emotions rolled around inside me like bits of glass in a kaleidoscope. I didn't know whether to feel resentful or grateful or happy or angry. Poseidon had ignored me for twelve years. Now suddenly he needed me.**

 **I looked at Chiron. "You've known I was Poseidon's son all along, haven't you?"**

"Of course he did" Annabeth said

 **"I had my suspicions. As I said . . . I've spoken to the** **Oracle** **, too. "**

 **I got the feeling there was a lot he wasn't telling me** **about** **his prophecy, but I decided I couldn't worry** **about** **that right now. After all, I was holding back information too.**

 **"So let me get this** **straight** **," I said. "I'm supposed go to the Underworld and confront the Lord of the Dead. "**

 **"Check," Chiron said.**

 **"Find the most** **powerful** **weapon in the universe. "**

 **"Check. "**

 **"And get it back to** **Olympus** **before the summer solstice, in ten days. "**

 **"That's** **about** **right. "**

 **I looked at Grover, who gulped down the ace of hearts.**

 **"Did I mention that Maine is very nice this time of year?" he asked weakly.**

 **"You don't have to go," I told him. "I can't ask that of you.**

 **"Oh . . . " He shifted his hooves. "No . . . its just that satyrs and underground places . . . well. . . "**

 **He took a deep breath, then stood, brushing the shredded cards and aluminum bits off his T-shirt. "You saved my life,** **Percy** **. If . . . if you're serious** **about** **wanting me along, I won't let you down. "**

"and you didn't" Percy smiled at his friend

 **I felt so relieved I wanted to cry, though I didn't think that would be very heroic.** "It's okay to cry, it washes our eyes" Amy told him

 **Grover was the only friend I'd ever had for longer than a few months. I wasn't sure what good a satyr could do** **again** **st the forces of the dead, but I felt better knowing he'd be with me.**

"AWWW. That's so sweet"

 **"All the way, G-man. " I turned to Chiron. "So where do we go? The** **Oracle** **just said to go west. "**

 **"The entrance to the Underworld is always in the west. It moves from age to age, just like** **Olympus** **. Right now, of course, its in America. "**

 **"Where?"**

 **Chiron looked surprised. "I thought that would be obvious enough. The entrance to the Underworld is in Los Angeles. "**

 **"Oh," I said. "Naturally. So we just get on a plane—"**

"Don't" Jason said

 **"No!" Grover shrieked. "** **Percy** **, what are you thinking? Have you ever been on a plane in your life?"**

 **I shook my head, feeling embarrassed.**

 **My mom had never taken me anywhere by plane. She'd always said we didn't have the money.**

"You shouldn't be embarrassed about that. I've never been on a plane either" Leo told him and Percy smiled at Leo

 **Besides, her parents had died in a plane crash.**

"A reason why I'm afraid of heights" Trina said "You told me that story and I got more afraid of heights"

 **"** **Percy** **, think," Chiron said. "You are the son of the Sea God. Your** **father** **s bitterest rival is Zeus, Lord of the Sky. Your mother knew better than to trust you in an airplane. You would be in Zeus's domain. You would never come down** **again** **alive. "**

"Exactly another reason why I'm afraid of heights" Trina shuddered

"He's not going to blast you when your with me" Josh said putting an arm around her

"Not taking the chance" she replied

 **Overhead,** **lightning** **crackled. Thunder boomed.**

 **"Okay," I said, determined not to look at the storm. "So, I'll travel overland. "**

"Yep"

 **"That's right," Chiron said. "Two companions may accompany you. Grover is one. The other has already volunteered, if you will accept her help. "**

 **"Gee," I said, feigning surprise. "Who else would be stupid enough to volunteer for a** **quest** **like this?"**

"Yeah who?" Leo asked and Annabeth frowned at both Percy and Leo

 **The air shimmered behind Chiron.**

 **Annabeth became visible, stuffing her Yankees cap into her back pocket.**

"Oh" Leo said

"How long have you been there actually?" Percy asked his girlfriend

"Since you went to the Oracle"

 **"I've been waiting a long time for a** **quest** **, seaweed brain,"**

"Awwwwww. You called him seaweed brain for the first time!" Jessy squealed

 **she said. "Athena is no fan of Poseidon,**

"Not a fan at all" Everyone said at the same time

"You should see them at our birthday parties" Trina said

"They come to your birthday?" Annabeth asked

"Both of them. Every year" Amythyst answered

"They keep on competing on who can give the best gifts, or who can get there first" Trina told them

"Or on who will leave last" Amy continued

"On Amy's third birthday they competed on whose the best grandparent, they kept asking Amy who she liked best"

"Who did you choose?" Percy asked

"None. I kept saying Grandma Sally" Amy answered smiling

 **but if you're going to save the world, I'm the best person to keep you from messing up. "**

"She really is" Trina smiled at Annabeth

 **"If you do say so yourself," I said. "I suppose you have a plan, wise girl?"**

"You shouldn't be asking that, Percy" Piper told him "She always has a plan"

"And a back up plan" Jason continued

"and a back up plan for the back up plan" Leo added laughing

"How about a back up plan for the back up plan of the back up plan?" Frank asked

"I just got confused" Percy said

"Should I continue reading then?" Alex asked

"Good Idea" Jason said

 **Her cheeks colored. "Do you want my help or not?"**

"Her cheeks are colored now too" Amythyst observed smiling

 **The truth was, I did. I needed all the help I could get.**

"and you needed Annabeth!" Piper said

 **"A trio," I said. "That'll work. "**

"It's always a trio anyways" Thalia said "Except for that one time that there were five of us"

"and when there were four of us" Annabeth said

"Let me guess? We'll find out later?" Hazel asked

"Yep!"

 **"Excellent," Chiron said. "This afternoon, we can take you as far as the bus terminal in Manhattan. After that, you are on your own. "**

"I hate it when Chiron says that" Nick said

 **Lightning** **flashed. Rain poured down on the meadows that were never supposed to have violent weather.**

"That sounds so sad when you say it like that" Jessy said

 **"No time to waste," Chiron said. "I think you should all get packing. "**

"And that's the end of it" Alex said closing the book "I guess it's time for lunch?"

"LUNCH!" Grover screamed running towards the kitchen

"Oh Grover"

 **Hello guys! hope you liked this chapter, I had a hard time writing this one. Anyways do you like it? Love it? Think it needs improvement? Tell me in a review! thanks a million to those who reviewed on my last chapter! :) xoxo chinfev1203**


	14. Third Day : Third Lunch

**THIRD DAY: THIRD LUNCH**

Today's lunch was much similar to the lunch that they had during their first day of reading, different kinds of food were on the dinning table. Piper took this opportunity to try to make Jason and Josh eat vegetables. She sat beside Jessy and gave her a bowl of salad, who happily took it, and pushed two bowls of salad to Jason and Josh who were sitting in front of her.

"Pleaseeee" Piper told the two boys smiling "Come on Jason, be a good example to your son" she told him  
"Fine" he replied and looked at Josh  
Josh agreed as well and took the bowl of vegetable salad, knowing he wouldn't win against his mom, mother's are always right after all. At least that's the rule at their house.  
Piper smiled to herself and started to think of ways on how to get the two boys to eat more vegetables and less meat.

Leo and Will were digging in to some fish, when Amythyst suddenly screamed  
"Fish?! you're eating fish?!" she yelled  
"Uhm… yes?" Leo replied confused  
"Fish are friends! Not food!" she said taking the fish away from Leo "All they want to do is to keep swimming" she was crying now "you poor little fishy"  
Percy came over and let his daughter sit on his lap while Annabeth took all the fish from the dinning table and hid them from Amythyst  
"These mean boys are eating our friends aren't they?" Percy said comforting his crying daughter  
She sniffed "Yes"  
"It's okay sweetheart, they're going to apologize, right?" he said looking pointedly at Leo and Will  
"We're sorry, we wont eat your friends ever again" they said  
"That made us sound like cannibals" Leo whispered to Will who told him to shut up  
"Okay" Amythyst said "But you have to eat vegetables instead" she smiled at Piper who immediately pushed two bowls of salad to Will and Leo  
"Fine by me" Will said  
"NOOOOOOOO" Leo screamed  
"Come on, Leo" Jason said "Josh and I are eating it"

"So none of you eat fish?" Hazel asked the Jackson's  
She nodded "Mommy doesn't eat fish anymore either"  
"I stopped eating fish when Percy and I started dating" Annabeth told them  
"But you don't freak out when someone eats fish?" Reyna asked them  
"Nope" Trina answered and leaned closer to Reyna "Amythyst is more sensitive on that topic"

"She only cares if Josh eats them" Jessy said "One time when mom was in L.A, Dad and I teased Josh by taking him to a sea food restaurant for dinner"  
"What happened?" Piper asked  
"He didn't eat anything. I tried telling him that Trina would never have to find out, but all he had was Soda and the mixed vegetables side dish" Jessy laughed "Daddy felt sorry for Josh, and bought him a box of Pizza before we went home"  
"It was your idea" Josh grumbled  
"Dad and I were betting whether you'd actually eat fish or not" she explained "I lost by the way. But the lobster there was so…." she started but then received a glare from Amy "going to shut up now" Jessy said and went back to her salad

The rest of their lunch went smoothly after that, Grover ate as much as he can, Calypso was lecturing Leo how he should really include more vegetables in his diet, Nico and Will were deep in conversation, Reyna and Thalia were talking as they ate as well, Hazel and Frank were sharing dessert, Piper and Jessy tried to give Josh and Jason more Vegetables, The Jackson family were bonding, and Rachel, Alex and Nick were talking about Apollo as they ate. Soon enough, they were finished with Lunch and it was time for them to read the book once again.

They all went back to the living room, and took their respective seats. Alex retrieved the book from the coffee table and handed it to Jessy "Here you go, baby" he told her and then froze realizing his mistake "Uhm.. Sorry" he scratch the back of his neck "Force of Habit"  
"Yeah. Of course" she replied taking the book from him and flipping the pages to the chapter she was going to read.

" **Chapter 10. I RUIN A PERFECTLY GOOD BUS" Jess said as she started to read**


	15. Chapter 10: Jessy

**10\. I RUIN A PERFECTLY GOOD BUS** Jessy read

Piper could tell that she was still distracted from Alex's slip of the tongue from earlier but she tried her hardest not to let it show. Though the rest didn't get to see through her facade, Jessy couldn't fool Piper, she didn't know if it was because she was her daughter or if Piper was just sensing her emotions.

 **It didn't take me long to pack. I decided to leave the Minotaur horn in my cabin,**

"Why would you bring it anyway?" Annabeth asked looking over at her boyfriend who just shrugged

 **which** **left me only an extra change of clothes and a toothbrush to stuff in a backpack Grover had found for me.**

"Found where?" Leo asked but no one answered him

 **The camp store loaned me one hundred dollars in mortal money and twenty golden drachmas.**

"Did you ever get to pay them back?" Grover asked

"Nope"

 **These coins were as big as Girl Scout cookies and had images of various** **Greek** **gods stamped on one side and the Empire State Building on the other. The ancient mortal drachmas had been silver, Chiron told us, but** **Olympians** **never used less than pure gold. Chiron said the coins might come in handy for non-mortal transactions—whatever that meant.**

"It meant that…" Annabeth started but was cut off by Percy

"I know that now" he told her as he kissed her cheek

 **He gave Annabeth and me each a canteen of nectar and a Ziploc bag full of ambrosia squares, to be used only in emergencies, if we were seriously hurt. It was god food, Chiron reminded us. It would cure us of almost any injury, but it was lethal to mortals. Too much of it would make a half-blood very, very feverish. An overdose would burn us up, literally.**

 **Annabeth was** **bring** **ing her magic Yankees cap,** **which** **she told me had been a twelfth-birthday present from her mom.**

With that said both Trina and Amythyst waved their magic invisibility caps in front of Annabeth, telling her that it was a Christmas present from Athena.

 **She carried a book on famous classical architecture, written in Ancient** **Greek** **, to read when she got bored,**

"How?!" almost all the demigods asked "How would you get bored in a quest with monsters chasing you every minute?"

"I had to be prepared, you should always bring a book in case you get bored" Annabeth defended herself

"She's not the only one" Nick said glancing at Trina

"Trina always brings a book on quest" Josh said "Actually she brings a book anywhere, even on dates"

"Though its not architecture books, she brings fiction books, usually Young Adult fiction books" Jessy added

"You bring a book on dates?" Rachel asked

"Why not?" Trina answered her

"Its perfectly understandable, My brother can be boring" Jessy said laughing then got hit in the head with the book she was holding "OW!"

"Read!" her brother told her

 **and a long bronze knife, hidden in her shirt sleeve. I was sure the knife would get us busted the first time we went through a metal detector.**

"Nope" Hazel commented "the mist would have hid that"

 **Grover wore his fake feet and his pants to pass as human. He wore a green rasta-style cap,**

Everyone looked at Grover and saw that he was actually wearing the same cap right now.

 **because when it rained his curly hair flattened and you could just see the tips of his horns. His bright orange backpack was full of scrap metal and apples to snack on. In his pocket was a set of reed pipes his daddy goat had carved for him, even though he only knew two songs: Mozarts Piano Concerto no. 12 and Hilary Duffs "So Yesterday," both of** **which** **sounded pretty bad on reed pipes.**

"Maybe you should try something different" Nick told the Satyr

 **We waved good-bye to the other campers, took one last look at the strawberry fields, the ocean, and the Big House, then hiked up Half-Blood Hill to the tall pine tree that used to be Thalia, daughter of Zeus.**

"Now its Thalia, daughter of Zeus who used to be a Pine Tree" Percy commented

 **Chiron was waiting for us in his wheelchair. Next to him stood the surfer dude I'd seen when I was recovering in the sick room. According to Grover, the guy was the camps head of security. He supposedly had eyes all over his body so he could never be surprised. Today, though, he was wearing a chauffeurs uniform, so I could only see extra peepers on his hands, face and neck.**

Piper smiled at the thought of Argus

 **"This is Argus," Chiron told me. "He will drive you into the city, and, er, well, keep an eye on things. "**

Everyone snickered and shook their heads at Chiron's pun

 **I heard footsteps behind us.**

 **Luke came running up the hill, carrying a pair of basketball shoes.**

Grover frowned as he remembered those shoes and what it did to him

 **"Hey!" he panted. "Glad I caught you. "**

 **Annabeth blushed, the way she always did when Luke was around.**

"I WAS NOT BLUSHING!" the said girl yelled

"Yes you were" Percy and Grover told her

 **"Just wanted to say good luck," Luke told me. "And I thought . . . um, maybe you could use these. "**

"We used them alright, but they weren't that helpful" Grover muttered under his breath

 **He handed me the sneakers,** **which** **looked pretty normal. They even smelled kind of normal.**

"How do sneakers smell normal?" Jessy asked him

"Want to smell my sneakers?" Leo offered

Instead of responding, Jessy chose to keep reading

 **Luke said, "Maia!"**

 **White birds wings sprouted out of the heels, startling me so much, I dropped them. The shoes flapped around on the ground until the wings folded up and disappeared.**

"That is so cool!" Leo yelled in amazement

 **"Awesome!" Grover said.**

"Not" Grover grumbled

 **Luke smiled. "Those served me well when I was on my** **quest** **. Gift from Dad. Of course, I don't use them much these days. . . . " His expression turned sad.**

Annabeth sighed remembering what happened to Luke after he got back from his quest.

 **I didn't know what to say. It was cool enough that Luke had come to say good-bye. I'd been afraid he might resent me for getting so much attention the last few days. But here he was giving me a magic gift. . . . It made me blush almost as much as Annabeth.**

Annabeth looked at Percy weirdly "Don't tell me you had a crush on him too?"

"No, of course not"

 **"Hey, man," I said. "Thanks. "**

 **"Listen,** **Percy** **. . . " Luke looked uncomfortable. "A lot of hopes are riding on you. So just . . . kill some** **monsters** **for me, okay?"**

"and Kill monsters he did" Grover commented

"Though he almost got himself killed a few times too" Annabeth added remembering their first quest.

 **We shook hands. Luke patted Grover's head between his horns, then gave a good-bye hug to Annabeth, who looked like she might pass out.**

"I hate this chapter" Annabeth muttered which made everyone laugh

 **After Luke was gone, I told her, "You're hyperventilating. "**

"Was not!"

 **"Am not. "**

"My past self even agrees with me"

"Or like you agree with her" Rachel said

 **"You let him capture the flag instead of you, didn't you?"**

"Yes she did" Trina said frowning at her mom.

 **"Oh . . . why do I want to go anywhere with you,** **Percy** **?"**

"Because you love him" Amythyst commented

"Wait… I'm curious" Rachel started "Annabeth was crushing on Luke when she was twelve, Trina has been dating Josh for two years now, what's in your love life?" she asked Amy

"Nothing" the little girl answered to Percy's relief

"She's been attracting a lot of guys attention, from both camps" Jessy answered Rachel

Percy frowned thinking on how many guys were trying to get his daughters attention.

"No I'm not" the eleven-year-old said already blushing

"Let's see there's…." Trina started but was cut off by Jessy reading

 **She stomped down the other side of the hill,**

"Wait a sec!" Percy interrupted while looking at the kids from the future "from both camps?!"

Trina, Josh, Jessy, Alex and Nick nodded their heads

"But you don't have a boyfriend yet right?" Percy asked Amy who shook her head

"Protective dad alert" Frank teased Percy

"Oh.. okay. Good" Percy muttered assuring himself "How many guys is that exactly?"

Trina counted on her fingers "Lets see.. hmmm… I think there's seven guys"

"SEVEN!?" Percy screamed before he fainted

"You just had to tell him" Amy told her older sister frowning

"He asked"

"Seven? Seriously?" Annabeth asked her protective mommy instincts coming out

"I don't know… I don't pay much attention to them" Amy said fidgeting with her hair

"How do you know about it?" Annabeth asked Trina

"The guys that like her told me" she answered

"How many guys are crushing on you?" Calypso asked Trina

"Just me" her boyfriend answered for her

"There are other guys, but they're too afraid of my brother" Jessy told everyone

Trina rolled her eyes as her boyfriend kissed her cheek

"Stay away from my daughter" Percy muttered in his sleep

"Is he talking to me?" Josh asked

"I think he's talking to you and the other seven guys" Piper told him

"Should we wake him up?" Jason asked

Annabeth shook her head and told them that Percy will just wake up on his own later and motioned for Jessy to continue reading

 **where a white SUV waited on the shoulder of the road. Argus followed, jingling his car keys.**

 **I picked up the flying shoes and had a sudden bad feeling. I looked at Chiron. "I won't be able to use these, will I?"**

"Nope. Don't even try" Jason muttered

 **He shook his head. "Luke meant well,** **Percy** **. But taking to the air . . . that would not be wise for you. "**

"Better let Wise Girl use them, now that would be wise" Leo joked but received a glare from Annabeth

 **I nodded, disappointed, but then I got an idea. "Hey, Grover. You want a magic item?"**

 **His eyes lit up. "Me?"**

 **Pretty soon wed laced the sneakers over his fake feet, and the worlds first flying goat boy was ready for launch.**

Jessy and Amy looked at each other before yelling "Disney Show! Grover the flying goat"

Which then woke Percy up who approached his two daughters, hugged them and told them that they'll always be his little girls and to stay away from boys.

"Do you also mean me?" Josh asked frowning

"Nah. You're good. I like you" Percy said ruffling Josh's hair

Josh smiled at Percy and Jessy took this as her cue to continue reading

 **"Maia!" he shouted.**

 **He got off the ground okay, but then fell over sideways so his backpack dragged through the grass. The winged shoes kept bucking up and down like tiny broncos.**

Grover started blushing as the rest started to laugh

 **Practice," Chiron called after him. "You just need practice!"**

 **"Aaaaa!" Grover went flying sideways down the hill like a possessed lawn mower, heading toward the van.**

A few of the demigods in the room started laughing harder as they imagined how Grover looked when that was happening.

 **Before I could follow, Chiron caught my arm. "I should have trained you better,** **Percy** **," he said. "If only I had more time. Hercules, Jason—they all got more training. "**

"Huh?" Jessy asked and looked over at Jason

"I think he means the original Jason" Jason told her

"Original? Is there some kind of fake Jason?" Jessy asked and Josh face palmed

"It's the Jason from the myths, Jason and the Argonauts" Jason explained to his daughter

"You could've just told me that it was the Jason from the Ancient times, daddy" Jessy grumbled putting her hands on her hips "You know I'm not the smart twin"

Jason was about to protest but Jessy had continued reading

 **"That's okay. I just wish—"**

 **I stopped myself because I was** **about** **to sound like a brat. I was wishing my dad had given me a cool magic item to help on the** **quest** **, something as good as Luke's flying shoes, or Annabeth's invisible cap.**

"Your powers are cool" Hazel offered

 **"What am I thinking?" Chiron cried. "I can't let you get away without this. "**

 **He pulled a pen from his coat pocket and handed it to me. It was an ordinary disposable ballpoint, black ink, removable cap. Probably cost thirty cents.**

"I'm betting it cost more than that" Trina told him knowing that Chiron was giving Percy riptide.

 **"Gee," I said. "Thanks. "**

 **"** **Percy** **, that's a gift from your** **father** **. I've kept it for years, not knowing you were who I was waiting for. But the prophecy is clear to me now. You are the one. "**

"He's the one! Right Annabeth?" Will teased who got a glare in return

 **I remembered the field trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, when I'd vaporized Mrs. Dodds. Chiron had thrown me a pen that turned into a sword. Could this be . . . ?**

"Yeeeees!" Everyone told him

 **I took off the cap, and the pen grew longer and heavier in my hand. In half a second, I held a shimmering bronze sword with a double-edged blade, a leather-wrapped grip, and a flat hilt riveted with gold studs. It was the first weapon that actually felt balanced in my hand.**

 **"The sword has a long and tragic history that we need not go into," Chiron told me. "Its name is Anaklusmos. "**

"Did you ever get to find out about its history?" Grover asked Percy who shook his head. Chiron had kept Riptide's history a secret.

 **"Riptide," I translated, surprised the Ancient** **Greek** **came so easily.**

"Thanks to my lesson's with Annabeth" Percy kissed her cheek and smiled at her

 **"Use it only for emergencies," Chiron said, "and only** **again** **st** **monsters** **. No hero should harm mortals unless absolutely necessary, of course, but this sword wouldn't harm them in any case. "**

"Learned that when I first met Percy" Rachel commented. She was really lucky that demigod swords couldn't harm mortals, if it did, it would've been very painful for Rachel.

 **I looked at the wickedly sharp blade. "What do you mean it wouldn't harm mortals? How could it not?"**

 **"The sword is celestial bronze. Forged by the Cyclopes, tempered in the heart of** **Mount** **Etna, cooled in the River Lethe. It's deadly to** **monsters** **, to any creature from the Underworld, provided they don't kill you first. But the blade will pass through mortals like an illusion. They simply are not important enough for the blade to kill.**

"Excuse me?!" Rachel exclaimed "Not important enough?!"

"At least you don't get killed" Calypso offered

"You're one of the more important mortals" Piper added "Being the Oracle"

 **And I should warn you: as a demigod, you can be killed by either celestial or normal weapons. You are twice as vulnerable. "**

"Twice as vulnerable, twice as dangerous, everything is two times worse for demigods" Percy muttered

 **"Good to know. "**

 **"Now recap the pen. "**

 **I touched the pen cap to the sword tip and instantly Riptide shrank to a ballpoint pen** **again** **. I tucked it in my pocket, a little nervous, because I was famous for losing pens at** **school** **.**

"Wonder what would've happened if you actually lost Riptide?" Will wondered out loud

"We might have lost a war too" Grover answered him

 **"You can't," Chiron said.**

 **"Can't what?"**

 **"Lose the pen," he said. "It is enchanted. It will always reappear in your pocket. Try it. "**

Some of the demigods silently wished that their weapons reappeared in their pockets as well, it would have been really helpful in a lot of situations.

 **I was wary, but I threw the pen as far as I could down the hill and watched it disappear in the grass.**

 **"It may take a few moments," Chiron told me. "Now check your pocket. "**

 **Sure enough, the pen was there.**

 **"Okay, that's extremely cool," I admitted. "But what if a mortal sees me pulling out a sword?"**

 **Chiron smiled. "Mist is a** **powerful** **thing,** **Percy** **. "**

"Very very powerful thing" everyone agreed

 **"Mist?"**

 **"Yes. Read The Iliad.**

"Seriously Chiron?" Leo scoffed "Asking a dyslexic kid to read?"

"I know right?" Percy agreed with him

 **Its full of references to the stuff. Whenever divine or monstrous elements mix with the mortal world, they generate Mist,** **which** **obscures the vision of humans. You will see things just as they are, being a half-blood, but humans will interpret things quite differently. Remarkable, really, the lengths to** **which** **humans will go to fit things into their version of reality. "**

The demigods chuckled remembering how mortals interpreted things. Especially those who were there during the second titan war, and saw on the news how the mortals interpreted what had happened.

 **I put Riptide back in my pocket.**

 **For the first time, the** **quest** **felt real. I was actually leaving Half-Blood Hill. I was heading west with no** **adult** **supervision, no backup plan,**

"I'm sure Annabeth had a back up plan" Piper commented

"and a back up plan for the back up plan" Jason added chuckling

"and a back up plan for the back plan's back up plan" Leo said

"They get it" Annabeth grumbled gesturing for Jessy to continue reading

 **not even a cell phone. (Chiron said cell phones were traceable by** **monsters** **; if we used one, it would be** **worse** **than sending up a flare. )**

"Not anymore" the future kids said in unison

 **I had no weapon stronger than a sword to fight off** **monsters** **and reach the Land of the Dead.**

 **"Chiron . . . " I said. "When you say the gods are immortal. . . I mean, there was a time before them, right?"**

"You already had a theory even before you started the quest" Annabeth said "I'm impressed seaweed brain"

"Thanks, Wise Girl"

 **"Four ages before them, actually. The Time of the Titans was the Fourth Age, sometimes called the Golden Age,** **which** **is definitely a misnomer. This, the time of Western civilization and the rule of Zeus, is the Fifth Age. "**

 **"So what was it like . . . before the gods?"**

 **Chiron pursed his lips. "Even I am not old enough to remember that,**

"How old is he really?" Frank asked the Greek demigods

All the Greek's looked at Annabeth for an answer "Probably as old as the Big Three, more or less. I've never really asked Chiron how old he really is"

 **child, but I know it was a time of darkness and savagery for mortals. Kronos, the lord of the Titans, called his reign the Golden Age because men lived innocent and free of all knowledge. But that was mere propaganda. The Titan king cared nothing for your kind except as appetizers or a source of cheap entertainment. It was only in the early reign of Lord Zeus, when Prometheus the good Titan brought fire to mankind, that your species began to progress, and even then Prometheus was branded a radical thinker. Zeus punished him severely, as you may recall. Of course, eventually the gods warmed to humans, and Western civilization was born. "**

"They did more than just warm up to humans" Reyna said gesturing to all the demigods in the room

 **"But the gods can't die now, right? I mean, as long as Western civilization is alive, they're alive. So . . . even if I failed, nothing could happen so bad it would mess up everything, right?"**

"If you failed, we probably wouldn't be here right now" Hazel told him

 **Chiron gave me a melancholy smile. "No one knows how long the Age of the West will last,** **Percy** **. The gods are immortal, yes. But then, so were the Titans. They still exist, locked away in their various prisons, forced to endure endless pain and punishment, reduced in power, but still very much alive. May the Fates forbid that the gods should ever suffer such a doom, or that we should ever** **return** **to the darkness and chaos of the past.**

The demigods all had one thought, all the fighting that they do has pretty much the same goals, to live to see tomorrow, and to prevent the return of darkness and chaos. Since if they have lost the war, nobody really knows what would've happened, but it would've been chaos, ultimate chaos.

 **All we can do, child, is follow our destiny. "**

"We really don't have much of a choice, actually" Will said

 **"Our destiny . . . assuming we know what that is. "**

"We never really know what it is until we're face to face with it" Rachel told them

 **"Relax," Chiron told me. "Keep a clear head. And remember, you may be** **about** **to prevent the biggest war in human history. "**

"and that you did" Grover told his friend

"With your help of course, and Annabeth's too" Percy replied

 **"Relax," I said. "I'm very relaxed. "**

"So sarcastic" Jason muttered

 **When I got to the bottom of the hill, I looked back. Under the pine tree that used to be Thalia, daughter of Zeus, Chiron was now standing in full horse-man form, holding his bow high in salute. Just your typical summer-camp send-off by your typical centaur.**

 **Argus drove us out of the countryside and into western Long Island. It felt weird to be on a highway** **again** **,**

The demigods laughed, they always had that feeling whenever they went outside of Camp. Their world at their respective camps are truly much different from that of the mortal world.

 **Annabeth and Grover sitting next to me as if we were normal carpoolers. After two weeks at Half-Blood Hill, the real world seemed like a fantasy. I found myself staring at every McDonalds,**

Nico sighed he could use a happy meal right now, or anything from McDonalds actually.

 **every kid in the back of his parents car, every billboard and shopping mall.**

 **"So far so good," I told Annabeth. "Ten miles and not a single monster. "**

"You're going to jinx it" Piper told him

"He always tells me not to jinx things, and yet there he is doing exactly that" Trina looked pointedly at her father who smiled sheepishly at her

 **She gave me an irritated look. "Its bad luck to talk that way, seaweed brain. "**

 **"Remind me** **again** — **why do you hate me so much?"**

"I didn't hate you" Annabeth frowned

 **"I don't hate you. "**

Jessy looked at Annabeth for a moment "So weird how you still have the same response"

 **"Could've fooled me. "**

 **She folded her cap of invisibility. "Look . . . were just not supposed to get along, okay? Our parents are rivals. "**

"Didn't stop you from falling in love, getting married, and having two kids" Trina told her parents

 **"Why?"**

 **She sighed. "How many reasons do you want? One time my mom caught Poseidon with his girlfriend in Athena's temple,** **which** **is hugely disrespectful.**

"Medusa?" Calypso asked and Annabeth nodded

 **Another time, Athena and Poseidon competed to be the patron god for the city of Athens. Your dad created some stupid saltwater spring for his gift.**

"It wasn't stupid" Amythyst grumbled defending Poseidon

"Sorry" Annabeth apologized she felt like she was getting on her own daughters bad side, with the way her twelve year old self acted towards Percy.

 **My mom created the olive tree. The people saw that her gift was better, so they named the city after her. "**

 **"They must really like olives. "**

 **"Oh, forget it. "**

 **"Now, if she'd invented pizza—that I could understand. "**

"I want some pizza right now" Trina muttered

"You and your dad's obsession with Pizza" Josh said shaking his head and smiling at his girlfriend

"We just ate lunch" Annabeth told her

"Yeah but I'm craving for Pizza" she whined

"Me too" Percy mutered rubbing his belly

Just then boxes of pizza appeared on the coffee table in front of them

"Yey!" the two Jackson's cheered and got a box each, while the rest of them followed and got their share of Pizza.

Annabeth was looking at her daughter who was taking a bite at her pizza, and then offer it to Josh to give her boyfriend a bite.

"Is that how you usually eat pizza?" she asked her

"Just when she's in a good mood" Josh replied before Trina offered him another bite

"Want me to do the same to you, Wise Girl?"

"Nah. I'm good" she replied still looking at her daughter's interaction with her boyfriend.

Piper looked over at them too and thought how adorable that sight was.

When everyone was done eating their pizza (Percy had finished three boxes), Jessy continued reading.

 **"I said, forget it!"**

 **In the front seat, Argus smiled. He didn't say anything, but one blue eye on the back of his neck winked at me.**

"Argus knew something that you two didn't realize until years later" Grover told the couple

 **Traffic slowed us down in Queens. By the time we got into Manhattan it was sunset and starting to rain.**

 **Argus dropped us at the Greyhound Station on the Upper East Side, not far from my mom and Gabe's apartment. Taped to a mailbox was a soggy flyer with my picture on it: HAVE YOU SEEN THIS BOY?**

 **I ripped it down before Annabeth and Grover could notice.**

"We noticed, actually" Annabeth told Percy

 **Argus unloaded our bags, made sure we got our bus tickets, then drove away, the eye on the back of his hand opening to watch us as he pulled out of the parking lot.**

 **I thought** **about** **how close I was to my old apartment. On a normal day, my mom would be home from the candy store by now. Smelly Gabe was probably up there right now, playing poker, not even missing her.**

"Probably" Percy grumbled

 **Grover shouldered his backpack. He gazed down the street in the direction I was looking. "You want to know why she married him,** **Percy** **?"**

"I want to know" Trina said and her sister nodded in agreement.

 **I stared at him. "Were you reading my mind or something?"**

 **"Just your emotions. " He shrugged.**

"Why do people always think we're reading their minds?"

 **"Guess I forgot to tell you satyrs can do that. You were thinking** **about** **your mom and your step dad, right?"**

 **I nodded, wondering what else Grover might've forgotten to tell me.**

 **"Your mom married Gabe for you," Grover told me. "You call him Smelly, but you've got no idea. The guy has this aura…. Yuck. I can smell him from here. I can smell traces of him on you, and you haven't been near him for a week. "**

 **"Thanks," I said. "Wheres the nearest shower?"**

 **"You should be grateful,** **Percy** **.**

"WHY?" Almost everyone asked Grover

 **Your stepfather smells so repulsively human he could mask the presence of any demigod. As soon as I took a whiff inside his Camaro, I knew: Gabe has been covering your scent for years. If you hadn't lived with him every summer, you probably would've been found by** **monsters** **a long time ago. Your mom stayed with him to protect you.**

Alex was deep in thought and was wondering if his mother had done the same thing to protect him, since she was always with guys who were probably as bad and smelly as Gabe.

 **She was a smart lady. She must've loved you a lot to put up with that guy—if that makes you feel any better. "**

"So we have to thank that guy?" Amythyst asked confused

"I guess in a way, yeah?" Percy answered "Or thank his scent"

 **It didn't, but I forced myself not to show it. I'll see her** **again** **, I thought. She isn't gone.**

Everyone who knew and had met Sally all nodded their heads.

 **I wondered if Grover could still read my emotions, mixed up as they were. I was glad he and Annabeth were with me, but I felt guilty that I hadn't been** **straight** **with them. I hadn't told them the real reason I'd said yes to this crazy** **quest** **.**

 **The truth was, I didn't care** **about** **retrieving Zeus's** **lightning** **bolt, or saving the world, or even helping my** **father** **out of trouble. The more I thought** **about** **it, I resented Poseidon for never visiting me, never helping my mom, never even sending a lousy child-support check.**

"Could they though?" Frank asked

"Our dad does" Alex said

"No he doesn't" Will said he. Apollo never sent him a child-support check

"He does in our time" Nick explained "He's trying to be an 'awesome father' his words not ours"

"Really?" Will asked still can't believe what his future half-brothers were telling him

"He really does, and it comes with a Haiku every time. Sends one every month" Alex told him

Will was left speechless and Jessy took this as her cue to continue reading

 **He'd only claimed me because he needed a job done.**

 **All I cared** **about** **was my mom. Hades had taken her unfairly, and Hades was going to give her back.**

 **You will be betrayed by one who calls you a friend, the** **Oracle** **whispered in my mind. You will fail to save what matters most in the end.**

 **Shut up, I told it.**

 **The rain kept coming down.**

 **We got restless waiting for the bus and decided to play some Hacky Sack with one of Grover's apples. Annabeth was unbelievable. She could bounce the apple off her knee, her elbow, her shoulder, whatever. I wasn't too bad myself.**

Annabeth, Percy and Grover smiled remembering their Hacky Sack game. Especially Percy and Annabeth knowing how the game ended.

 **The game ended when I tossed the apple toward Grover and it got too close to his mouth. In one mega goat bite, our Hacky Sack disappeared—core, stem, and all.**

 **Grover blushed. He tried to apologize, but Annabeth and I were too busy cracking up.**

Pretty much how the room looked like right now, everybody was busy cracking up while Grover blushed.

 **Finally the bus came. As we stood in line to board, Grover started looking around, sniffing the air like he smelled his favorite** **school** **cafeteria delicacy—enchiladas.**

"Nope food. Just some old ladies who wanted you dead" the satyr muttered to himself

 **"What is it?" I asked.**

 **"I don't know," he said tensely. "Maybe its nothing. "**

'It was certainly not nothing' Grover thought 'if Annabeth wasn't there and gave Percy her invisibility cap, who knows what would've happened to Percy'

 **But I could tell it wasn't nothing. I started looking over my shoulder, too.**

 **I was relieved when we finally got on board and found seats together in the back of the bus. We stowed our backpacks. Annabeth kept slapping her Yankees cap nervously** **again** **st her thigh.**

 **As the last passengers got on, Annabeth clamped her hand onto my knee. "** **Percy** **. "**

"oh no"

"That's because you jinxed it earlier"

 **An old lady had just boarded the bus. She wore a crumpled velvet dress, lace gloves, and a shapeless orange-knit hat that shadowed her face, and she carried a big paisley purse. When she tilted her head up, her black eyes glittered, and my heart skipped a beat.**

 **It was Mrs. Dodds. Older, more withered, but definitely the same evil face.**

"and definitely wanted to kill me" Percy whispered

 **I scrunched down in my seat.**

 **Behind her came two more old ladies: one in a green hat, one in a purple hat. Otherwise they looked exactly like Mrs. Dodds—same gnarled hands, paisley handbags, wrinkled velvet dresses. Triplet demon grandmothers.**

Thalia shuddered remembering when those three were after her as well

 **They sat in the front row, right behind the driver. The two on the aisle crossed their legs over the walkway, making an X. It was casual enough, but it sent a clear message: nobody leaves.**

 **The bus pulled out of the station, and we headed through the slick streets of Manhattan. "She didn't stay dead long," I said, trying to keep my voice from quivering. "I thought you said they could be dispelled for a lifetime. "**

"If you're lucky" Trina scoffed

 **"I said if you're lucky," Annabeth said. "You're obviously not. "**

"Like mother, Like daughter" Percy laughed looking back and forth from Annabeth to Trina

 **"All three of them," Grover whimpered. "Di immortales!"**

 **"Its okay," Annabeth said, obviously thinking hard. "The Furies. The three worst** **monsters** **from the Underworld. No problem. No problem. Well just slip out the windows. "**

 **"They don't open," Grover moaned.**

"Out of all the time that the windows couldn't open, they chose that time!" Rachel sighed exasperated

 **"A back exit?" she suggested.**

 **There wasn't one. Even if there had been, it wouldn't have helped. By that time, we were on Ninth Avenue, heading for the Lincoln Tunnel.**

 **"They won't attack us with witnesses around," I said. "Will they?"**

"Never stopped monsters before" Reyna commented

 **"Mortals don't have good eyes," Annabeth reminded me. "Their brains can only process what they see through the Mist. "**

Rachel huffed

"You know its true" Annabeth told her mortal friend

 **"They'll see three old ladies killing us, won't they?"**

 **She thought** **about** **it. "Hard to say. But we can't count on mortals for help. Maybe an emergency exit in the roof . . . ?"**

 **We hit the Lincoln Tunnel, and the bus went dark except for the running lights down the aisle. It was eerily quiet without the sound of the rain.**

 **Mrs. Dodds got up. In a flat voice, as if shed rehearsed it,**

"She probably did" Nico said remembering who Mrs. Dodds actually was, and the times that she had turned to a teacher, a lawyer, and many more.

 **she announced to the whole bus: "I need to use the rest-room. "**

 **"So do I," said the second sister.**

 **"So do I," said the third sister.**

 **They all started coming down the aisle.**

"They sort of sound like typical girls" Nick commented and all the girls in the room looked at him

"You know, most girls usually go to the bathroom in groups" he explained

 **"I've got it," Annabeth said. "Percy, take my hat. "**

 **"What?"**

 **"You're the one they want. Turn invisible and go up the aisle. Let them pass you. Maybe you can get to the front and get away. "**

 **"But you guys—"**

 **"There's an outside chance they might not notice us," Annabeth said. "You're a son of one of the Big Three. Your smell might be overpowering. "**

 **"I can't just leave you. "**

"Dad's too loyal to leave" Amythyst smiled up at her father

 **"Don't worry about us," Grover said. "Go!"**

"He's not going to do that" Amy continued

 **My hands trembled. I felt like a coward, but I took the Yankees cap and put it on.**

 **When I looked down, my body wasn't there anymore.**

 **I started creeping up the aisle. I managed to get up ten rows, then duck into an empty seat just as the Furies walked past.**

 **Mrs. Dodds stopped, sniffing, and looked straight at me. My heart was pounding.**

As were everyone's hearts as well, waiting in anticipation on what would happen next

 **Apparently she didn't see anything. She and her sisters kept going.**

 **I was free. I made it to the front of the bus. We were almost through the Lincoln Tunnel now. I was about to press the emergency stop button when I heard hideous wailing from the back row.**

 **The old ladies were not old ladies anymore. Their faces were still the same—I guess those couldn't get any uglier— but their bodies had shriveled into leathery brown hag bodies with bats wings and hands and feet like gargoyle claws. Their handbags had turned into fiery whips.**

 **The Furies surrounded Grover and Annabeth, lashing their whips, hissing: "Where is it? Where?"**

"It?" Piper asked "Percy isn't an it"

 **The other people on the bus were screaming, cowering in their seats. They saw something, all right.**

"But they weren't seeing what you were seeing"

 **"He's not here!" Annabeth yelled. "He's gone!"**

 **The Furies raised their whips.**

 **Annabeth drew her bronze knife. Grover grabbed a tin can from his snack bag and prepared to throw it.**

 **What I did next was so impulsive and dangerous I should've been named ADHD poster child of the year.**

"That actually gave me an idea for a Father's day gift" Trina muttered smiling at Percy

"Your going to give me an award for being ADHD poster child of the year?"

"ADHD poster father of the year actually" his daughter laughed

 **The bus driver was distracted, trying to see what was going on in his rear view mirror.**

 **Still invisible, I grabbed the wheel from him and jerked it to the left. Everybody howled as they were thrown to the right, and I heard what I hoped was the sound of three Furies smashing against the windows.**

"Or it could've been Annabeth and Grover smashing against the windows" Calypso told him

"Don't worry. It was the furies" Annabeth replied

 **"Hey!" the driver yelled. "Hey—whoa!"**

 **We wrestled for the wheel. The bus slammed against the side of the tunnel, grinding metal, throwing sparks a mile behind us.**

 **We careened out of the Lincoln Tunnel and back into the rainstorm, people and monsters tossed around the bus, cars plowed aside like bowling pins.**

"Ever think of becoming an author?" Will asked Percy "You surely have a way of describing things"

"I must get it from my mom, she's an author" Percy replied proudly as he remembered his mothers works

 **Somehow the driver found an exit. We shot off the highway, through half a dozen traffic lights, and ended up barreling down one of those New Jersey rural roads where you can't believe there's so much nothing right across the river from New York. There were woods to our left, the Hudson River to our right, and the driver seemed to be veering toward the river.**

"You would've have survived anyway" Frank told him

"But Annabeth and Grover would be at risk of drowning" Hazel said

"Oh"

"Don't forget the mortals too" Rachel added

 **Another great idea: I hit the emergency brake.**

"An impulsive great idea"

 **The bus wailed, spun a full circle on the wet asphalt, and crashed into the trees. The emergency lights came on. The door flew open. The bus driver was the first one out, the passengers yelling as they stampeded after him. I stepped into the drivers seat and let them pass.**

 **The Furies regained their balance. They lashed their whips at Annabeth while she waved her knife and yelled in Ancient Greek, telling them to back off. Grover threw tin cans.**

 **I looked at the open doorway. I was free to go, but I couldn't leave my friends. I took off the invisible cap. "Hey!"**

'That's his fatal flaw' Annabeth thought

"You really are too loyal" Calypso commented remembering when she had offered Percy an easy way out of the war, to stay at her island, but he refused, maybe it was also because of his loyalty to his camp, his friends, and his family. Everything worked out just fine anyways, Percy won the war, and soon after, Calypso had met Leo.

 **The Furies turned, baring their yellow fangs at me, and the exit suddenly seemed like an excellent idea.**

"Gee?! you think?!" Grover and Annabeth yelled at him in unison

 **Mrs. Dodd's stalked up the aisle, just as she used to do in class, about to deliver my F- math test. Every time she flicked her whip, red flames danced along the barbed leather.**

 **Her two ugly sisters hopped on top of the seats on either side of her and crawled toward me like huge nasty lizards.**

 **"Perseus Jackson," Mrs. Dodds said, in an accent that was definitely from somewhere farther south than Georgia. "You have offended the gods. You shall die. "**

 **"I liked you better as a math teacher," I told her.**

"I like her better as a lawyer" Nico said

Everyone looked at him waiting for an explanation but he waved them off.

 **She growled.**

 **Annabeth and Grover moved up behind the Furies cautiously, looking for an opening.**

 **I took the ballpoint pen out of my pocket and uncapped it. Riptide elongated into a shimmering double-edged sword.**

 **The Furies hesitated.**

 **Mrs. Dodds had felt Riptides blade before. She obviously didn't like seeing it again.**

 **"Submit now," she hissed. "And you will not suffer eternal torment. "**

 **"Nice try," I told her.**

 **"Percy, look out!" Annabeth cried.**

"And there's Annabeth keeping you alive as usual" Thalia said

 **Mrs. Dodds lashed her whip around my sword hand while the Furies on the either side lunged at me.**

 **My hand felt like it was wrapped in molten lead, but I managed not to drop Riptide. I stuck the Fury on the left with its hilt, sending her toppling backward into a seat. I turned and sliced the Fury on the right. As soon as the blade connected with her neck, she screamed and exploded into dust. Annabeth got Mrs. Dodd's in a wrestlers hold and yanked her backward while Grover ripped the whip out of her hands.**

 **"Ow!" he yelled. "Ow! Hot! Hot!"**

 **The Fury I'd hilt-slammed came at me again, talons ready, but I swung Riptide and she broke open like a piñata.**

"Go Percy!" some of them cheered while some of them hadn't realized that they were holding their breaths as they were waiting to hear what would happen next.

 **Mrs. Dodds was trying to get Annabeth off her back. She kicked, clawed, hissed and bit, but Annabeth held on**

Reyna smiled clearly impressed at the twelve year old Annabeth

 **while Grover got Mrs. Dodds legs tied up in her own whip.**

"Nice one, Uncle flying goat boy" Amy smiled

 **Finally they both shoved her backward into the aisle. Mrs. Dodds tried to get up, but she didn't have room to flap her bat wings, so she kept falling down.**

 **"Zeus will destroy you!" she promised. "Hades will have your soul!"**

 **"Braccas meas vescimini!" I yelled.**

 **I wasn't sure where the Latin came from.**

"Yeah. Where did it came from?" the Romans asked

 **I think it meant "Eat my pants!"**

 **Thunder shook the bus. The hair rose on the back of my neck.**

 **"Get out!" Annabeth yelled at me. "Now!" I didn't need any encouragement.**

 **We rushed outside and found the other passengers wandering around in a daze, arguing with the driver, or running around in circles yelling, "Were going to die!" A Hawaiian-shirted tourist with a camera snapped my photograph before I could recap my sword.**

"Oh no" Everyone muttered 'That would make everything worse' they thought

 **"Our bags!" Grover realized. "We left our—"**

 **BOOOOOM!**

 **The windows of the bus exploded as the passengers ran for cover. Lightning shredded a huge crater in the roof, but an angry wail from inside told me Mrs. Dodds was not yet dead.**

 **"Run!" Annabeth said. "She's calling for reinforcements! We have to get out of here!"**

 **We plunged into the woods as the rain poured down, the bus in flames behind us, and nothing but darkness ahead.**

"And that's the end of the chapter" Jessy said and gave the book to Nick "Your turn to read Nicky"

 **Hello guys! Sorry this took so long. Hope you like this chapter and tell me your thoughts in a review! and please do check out my other story: The Joy of Babysitting. Thanks a million! Xoxo chinfev1203**


	16. Chapter 11: Nick

**11\. WE VISIT THE GARDEN GNOME EMPORIUM** Nick read

 **In a way, its nice to know there are Greek gods out there, because you have somebody to blame when things go wrong. For instance, when you're walking away from a bus that's just been attacked by monster hags and blown up by lightning, and its raining on top of everything else, most people might think that's just really bad luck; when you're a half-blood, you understand that some divine force really is trying to mess up your day.**

"Well…if you put it that way, it does kind of makes sense" Reyna said and everyone nodded in agreement

 **So there we were, Annabeth and Grover and I, walking through the woods along the New Jersey riverbank, the glow of New York City making the night sky yellow behind us, and the smell of the Hudson reeking in our noses.**

"Ew" Jessy frowned

 **Grover was shivering and braying, his big goat eyes turned slit-pupiled and full of terror. "Three Kindly Ones. All three at once. "**

 **I was pretty much in shock myself. The explosion of bus windows still rang in my ears. But Annabeth kept pulling us along, saying: "Come on! The farther away we get, the better. "**

 **"All our money was back there," I reminded her. "Our food and clothes. Everything. "**

"We really need to make bags that are like Percy's sword, one's that would magically appear on our backs. That would be really useful for quest" Leo suggested and started thinking on how to make those bags possible.

 **"Well, maybe if you hadn't decided to jump into the fight—"**

"I couldn't leave the two of you!" Percy defended himself

 **"What did you want me to do? Let you get killed?"**

 **"You didn't need to protect me, Percy. I would've been fine. "**

"Yeah… definitely fine" Percy muttered sarcastically as he glanced at Annabeth

"We know you girls can fight and protect yourselves just fine, but we still want to be able protect you" Jason told all the girls, especially Piper and Jessy. All the boys nodded in approval.

 **"Sliced like sandwich bread," Grover put in, "but fine. "**

Annabeth frowned

 **"Shut up, goat boy," said Annabeth.**

 **Grover brayed mournfully. "Tin cans . . . a perfectly good bag of tin cans. "**

"Oh Grover"

 **We sloshed across mushy ground, through nasty twisted trees that smelled like sour laundry.**

 **After a few minutes, Annabeth fell into line next to me. "Look, I. . . " Her voice faltered. "I appreciate your coming back for us, okay? That was really brave. "**

"It sounded like you had a hard time saying it" Piper observed

"I did" replied Annabeth

 **"We're a team, right?"**

"AWWWW" their daughters cooed and smiled at their parents.

 **She was silent for a few more steps. "Its just that if you died . . . aside from the fact that it would really suck for you, it would mean the quest was over. This may be my only chance to see the real world. "**

"Just when I thought they were having a sweet moment" Amythyst pouted though she did understand how her mom really wanted to see the real world, she had been at camp for so long, and at such a young age.

 **The thunderstorm had finally let up. The city glow faded behind us, leaving us in almost total darkness. I couldn't see anything of Annabeth except a glint of her blond hair.**

 **"You haven't left Camp Half-Blood since you were seven?" I asked her.**

 **"No . . . only short field trips. My dad—"**

 **"The history professor. "**

"I miss grandpa" Amythyst said sadly

"Is he still alive?" Annabeth asked suddenly alarmed at her daughters sad expression

"Of course he's still alive" Trina answered

"But we haven't seen him in like four months.. I think?" Amy explained "So I miss him"

 **"Yeah. It didn't work out for me living at home. I mean, Camp Half-Blood is my home. " She was rushing her words out now, as if she were afraid somebody might try to stop her. "At camp you train and train. And that's all cool and everything, but the real world is where the monsters are. That's where you learn whether you're any good or not. "**

 **If I didn't know better, I could've sworn I heard doubt in her voice.**

"Are you seriously doubting yourself Annabeth?!" Piper exclaimed "You're an amazing fighter!"

Everyone nodded and gave their fair share of compliments towards Annabeth

"Thanks guys"

 **"You're pretty good with that knife," I said.**

 **"You think so?"**

 **"Anybody who can piggyback-ride a Fury is okay by me. "**

Their daughters started giggling and writing on their notebooks

"How is that blackmail material?" Percy asked wondering why his daughters were writing it done

"Oh this isn't for blackmail. It's for our special project" Amy answered him

"Do I want to know?" Annabeth asked

"You do, but not know" Trina said smirking then went back to writing on he notebook. Everyone was looking at her wondering what she was writing. When Nick had not gone back to reading she looked up from her notebook.

"Don't mind me, just keep reading, I'll listen" she told him

But instead of going back to reading Nick continued to look at her and at her notebook, trying to get a peek of what she was writing.

"You really do love staring at me, don't you Nicky?" She smirked at him.

Nick turned a shade of red, while Josh and Jessy tried to hold back a laugh. Nick muttered a shut up in Trina's direction, and went back to reading. While Trina smirked, shook her head at Nick and went back to writing.

Piper and Annabeth looked at each other and both raised an eyebrow. Piper was wondering if her son was not the only one who had a thing for Trina. Maybe she should ask Jessy about it later.

 **I couldn't really see, but I thought she might've smiled.**

"I did" Annabeth smiled at him "Thanks for that by the way, seaweed brain"

 **"You know," she said, "maybe I should tell you . . . Something funny back on the bus . . . "**

 **Whatever she wanted to say was interrupted by a shrill toot-toot-toot, like the sound of an owl being tortured.**

"Poor owl" Amythyst frowned

 **"Hey, my reed pipes still work!" Grover cried.**

"Oh" Amy muttered

 **"If I could just remember a find path song, we could get out of these woods!". . . . . . . . .**

 **He puffed out a few notes, but the tune still sounded suspiciously like Hilary Duff.**

 **Instead of finding a path, I immediately slammed into a tree and got a nice-size knot on my head.**

Everybody snickered as Percy glared at them

 **Add to the list of superpowers I did not have: infrared vision.**

 **After tripping and cursing and generally feeling miserable for another mile or so, I started to see light up ahead: the colors of a neon sign. I could smell food. Fried, greasy, excellent food.**

All the boys started thinking of all the fried and greasy food that the could eat

 **I realized I hadn't eaten anything unhealthy since I'd arrived at Half-Blood Hill, where we lived on grapes, bread, cheese,**

'Those are much better food' Piper thought to herself she hoped that their dinner tonight won't be favorable for the boys

 **and extra-lean-cut nymph-prepared barbecue. This boy needed a double cheeseburger.**

"Cheeseburger" Thalia muttered dreamily

 **We kept walking until I saw a deserted two-lane road through the trees. On the other side was a closed-down gas station, a tattered billboard for a 1990s movie, and one open business, which was the source of the neon light and the good smell.**

"I hope we have cheeseburgers again for tonight" Leo muttered rubbing his belly

"You should eat healthier Repair boy" Piper scolded him

"That is my healthy!" he exclaimed

 **It wasn't a fast-food restaurant like I'd hoped. It was one of those weird roadside curio shops that sell lawn flamingos and wooden Indians and cement grizzly bears and stuff like that. The main building was a long, low warehouse, surrounded by acres of statuary. The neon sign above the gate was impossible for me to read, because if there's anything worse for my dyslexia than regular English, its red cursive neon English.**

The demigods all muttered in agreement

 **To me, it looked like: ATNYU MES GDERAN GOMEN MEPROUIM.**

 **"What the heck does that say?" I asked.**

"You tell us" everyone muttered

 **"I don't know," Annabeth said.**

"Huh?"

"I have dyslexia to you know" Annabeth grumbled crossing her arms over her chest

 **She loved reading so much, I'd forgotten she was dyslexic, too.**

"Kind of like this one" Josh said kissing his girlfriends cheek "People often forget she has dyslexia because she reads a lot"

"Like mother, Like daughter" Percy smiled fondly over his daughter

 **Grover translated: "Aunty Ems Garden Gnome Emporium. "**

 **Flanking the entrance, as advertised, were two cement garden gnomes, ugly bearded little runts, smiling and waving, as if they were about to get their picture taken.**

'Because they were. At least they thought it was only a picture' Percy, Annabeth and Grover thought to themselves and looked at each other.

 **I crossed the street, following the smell of the hamburgers.**

 **"Hey . . . " Grover warned.**

 **"The lights are on inside," Annabeth said. "Maybe its open. "**

"ANNABETH!?"

"I was hungry! And I was twelve!"

 **"Snack bar," I said wistfully.**

 **"Snack bar," she agreed.**

"The dam snack bar" Thalia snickered looking at Grover and Percy who laughed as well

 **"Are you two crazy?" Grover said. "This place is weird. "**

"Please listen to the Satyr" Calypso muttered

 **We ignored him.**

"and they don't" muttered again by Calypso

 **The front lot was a forest of statues: cement animals, cement children, even a cement satyr playing the pipes, which gave Grover the creeps.**

 **"Bla-ha-ha!" he bleated. "Looks like my Uncle Ferdinand!"**

'It really was my Uncle Ferdinand' Grover thought sadly

 **We stopped at the warehouse door.**

 **"Don't knock," Grover pleaded. "I smell monsters. "**

 **"Your nose is clogged up from the Furies," Annabeth told him. "All I smell is burgers. Aren't you hungry?"**

"Seriously Annabeth?"

"I was hungry! Shut up!"

"People's brains don't work when they're hungry" Amythyst said innocently

"Yeah. I agree with her"Leo said

"So your always hungry then?" Calypso replied

"Yeah mamacita….. Hey!"

 **"Meat!" he said scornfully. "I'm a vegetarian. "**

Piper and Grover smiled at each other, being the only vegetarians in the room.

 **"You eat cheese enchiladas and aluminum cans," I reminded him. .**

 **"Those are vegetables. Come on. Lets leave. These statues are . . . looking at me. "**

"Tin cans are not vegetables" Piper told Grover

"Yes they are! To satyr's those are vegetables"

 **Then the door creaked open, and standing in front of us was a tall Middle Eastern woman—at least, I assumed she was Middle Eastern, because she wore a long black gown that covered everything but her hands, and her head was completely veiled. Her eyes glinted behind a curtain of black gauze, but that was about all I could make out. Her coffee-colored hands looked old, but well-manicured and elegant, so I imagined she was a grandmother who had once been a beautiful lady.**

"had once been a beautiful lady alright" Percy muttered "but not anymore"

 **Her accent sounded vaguely Middle Eastern, too. She said, "Children, it is too late to be out all alone. Where are your parents?"**

"They're at Olympus probably watching us right now" Leo said

 **"They're . . . um . . . " Annabeth started to say.**

 **"We're orphans," I said.**

 **"Orphans?" the woman said. The word sounded alien in her mouth. "But, my dears! Surely not!"**

 **"We got separated from our caravan," I said. "Our circus caravan. The ringmaster told us to meet him at the gas station if we got lost, but he may have forgotten, or maybe he meant a different gas station. Anyway, were lost. Is that food I smell?"**

Everyone gave Percy a look that ranged from "Seriously that's all you could think of?" "Where did you even get that from?" and "Why a circus?"

"Like Annabeth said, I was hungry!" Percy defended himself and glanced at Amythyts

"and like she said brains don't work when were hungry"

"So like Leo, you're always hungry then too?" Thalia insulted

"Shut up, Pinecone face"

 **"Oh, my dears," the woman said. "You must come in, poor children. I am Aunty Em. Go straight through to the back of the warehouse, please. There is a dining area. "**

 **We thanked her and went inside.**

 **Annabeth muttered to me, "Circus caravan?"**

 **"Always have a strategy, right?"**

 **"Your head is full of kelp. "**

"So I've been told"

 **The warehouse was filled with more statues—people in all different poses, wearing all different outfits and with different expressions on their faces. I was thinking you'd have to have a pretty huge garden to fit even one of these statues, because they were all life-size. But mostly, I was thinking about food.**

"Boys and their food" Piper muttered under her breath

 **Go ahead, call me an idiot for walking into a strange lady's shop like that just because I was hungry,**

"You're an idiot!" Everyone screamed at Percy's face

Except for Amythyst of course, she was too nice to call her daddy an idiot. And besides she was willing to bet that her dad wasn't the only one who would do that.

 **but I do impulsive stuff sometimes. Plus, you've never smelled Aunty Ems burgers. The aroma was like laughing gas in the dentists chair—it made everything else go away. I barely noticed Grover's nervous whimpers, or the way the statues eyes seemed to follow me, or the fact that Aunty Em had locked the door behind us.**

"Could it possibly have been enchanted?" Hazel asked

"Probably" Grover grumbled

 **All I cared about was finding the dining area. And sure enough, there it was at the back of the warehouse, a fast-food counter with a grill, a soda fountain, a pretzel heater, and a nacho cheese dispenser. Everything you could want, plus a few steel picnic tables out front.**

All the boys smiled dreamily thinking of the food, and they couldn't wait for dinner time to finally arrive.

 **"Please, sit down," Aunty Em said.**

 **"Awesome," I said.**

 **"Um," Grover said reluctantly, "we don't have any money, ma'am. "**

"Grover its free food!" Leo exclaimed

"Free food from someone who wants to kill you" he grumbled in response

 **Before I could jab him in the ribs, Aunty Em said, "No, no, children. No money. This is a special case, yes? It is my treat, for such nice orphans. "**

 **"Thank you, ma'am," Annabeth said.**

 **Aunty Em stiffened, as if Annabeth had done something wrong, but then the old woman relaxed just as quickly, so I figured it must've been my imagination.**

 **"Quite all right, Annabeth," she said.**

"You haven't even told them your names yet" Hazel commented

 **"You have such beautiful gray eyes, child. " Only later did I wonder how she knew Annabeth's name, even though we had never introduced ourselves.**

"See!"

 **Our hostess disappeared behind the snack counter and started cooking. Before we knew it, she'd brought us plastic trays heaped with double cheeseburgers, vanilla shakes, and XXL servings of French fries.**

"I really wish we'd have that for dinner" Will said and almost everyone nodded. They too were craving for cheeseburgers, vanilla shakes, and french fries. They hoped the fates would grant this one, since earlier they granted Trina's wish of eating Pizza.

 **I was halfway through my burger before I remembered to breathe.**

 **Annabeth slurped her shake.**

 **Grover picked at the fries, and eyed the trays waxed paper liner as if he might go for that, but he still looked too nervous to eat.**

 **"Whats that hissing noise?" he asked.**

 **I listened, but didn't hear anything. Annabeth shook her head.**

"What's up with the two of you?" Reyna gestured to Percy and Annabeth "That can't just be because of hunger, you already ate"

"Probably enchanted? Or the mist?" Hazel offered

"Probably"

 **"Hissing?" Aunty Em asked. "Perhaps you hear the deep-fryer oil. You have keen ears, Grover. "**

"Grover didn't introduce himself either!"

"I thought Percy already said earlier that they didn't introduce themselves, yet the lady knew?" Frank asked

"Oh" Hazel muttered

 **"I take vitamins. For my ears. "**

"Vitamins for your ears?" Nico asked "Is there even such a thing?"

"and do you actually take it?" Jason added

Grover was about to answer that he didn't actually take the vitamins, it was part of being a Satyr, but before he could answer he was cut off by Will.

"There is actually" Will started

"Vitamin C, E, D and B-12" Alex continued

The three son's of Apollo then proceeded to giving a 30 minute lecture about good vitamins and food that will keep the ears healthy, how to take good care of their ears, and other ear related matters. Whenever someone would try to interrupt them, Will shot them a glare that shut them up.

".…..and that's about it" Alex finished

"Are you done?" Leo yawned

"Actually there's still…" Nick started

"LATER!" Everyone shouted "Please read!"

"Alright. Alright" Nick muttered, picked up the book again and went back to reading

 **"That's admirable," she said. "But please, relax. "**

 **Aunty Em ate nothing. She hadn't taken off her headdress, even to cook, and now she sat forward and interlaced her fingers and watched us eat. It was a little unsettling, having someone stare at me when I couldn't see her face, but I was feeling satisfied after the burger, and a little sleepy, and I figured the least I could do was try to make small talk with our hostess.**

"That's polite" Hazel commented

"One of the few times he was actually polite to a monster" Grover said

 **"So, you sell gnomes," I said, trying to sound interested.**

 **"Oh, yes," Aunty Em said. "And animals. And people. Anything for the garden. Custom orders. Statuary is very popular, you know. "**

"Really?" Piper asked 'Wait… Statues… Hissing…. Medusa?' Piper thought to herself. Her father had bought a statue once, he said it was from New Jersey. Piper hoped it wasn't a statue from Medusa, then it would mean…. the statue used to be a living person, and it was in their house.

 **"A lot of business on this road?"**

 **"Not so much, no. Since the highway was built. . . most cars, they do not go this way now. I must cherish every customer I get. "**

"Cherish them by killing them" Annabeth grumbled

 **My neck tingled, as if somebody else was looking at me. I turned, but it was just a statue of a young girl holding an Easter basket. The detail was incredible, much better than you see in most garden statues. But something was wrong with her face. It looked as if she were startled, or even terrified.**

'Almost like the one at home' Piper thought 'Oh no'

 **"Ah," Aunty Em said sadly. "You notice some of my creations do not turn out well. They are marred. They do not sell. The face is the hardest to get right. Always the face. "**

 **"You make these statues yourself?" I asked.**

 **"Oh, yes. Once upon a time, I had two sisters to help me in the business, but they have passed on, and Aunty Em is alone. I have only my statues. This is why I make them, you see. They are my company. " The sadness in her voice sounded so deep and so real that I couldn't help feeling sorry for her.**

 **Annabeth had stopped eating. She sat forward and said, "Two sisters?"**

"FINALLY!"

 **"Its a terrible story," Aunty Em said. "Not one for children, really. You see, Annabeth, a bad woman was jealous of me, long ago, when I was young. I had a. . . a boyfriend, you know, and this bad woman was determined to break us apart. She caused a terrible accident. My sisters stayed by me. They shared my bad fortune as long as they could, but eventually they passed on. They faded away. I alone have survived, but at a price. Such a price. "**

"Is that who I think it is?" Jason asked and looked at Annabeth who nodded

 **I wasn't sure what she meant, but I felt bad for her. My eyelids kept getting heavier, my full stomach making me sleepy. Poor old lady. Who would want to hurt somebody so nice?**

"There is seriously some magic on that food" Hazel said frowning

 **"Percy?" Annabeth was shaking me to get my attention. "Maybe we should go. I mean, the ringmaster will be waiting. "**

 **She sounded tense. I wasn't sure why. Grover was eating the waxed paper off the tray now, but if Aunty Em found that strange, she didn't say anything.**

 **"Such beautiful gray eyes," Aunty Em told Annabeth again. "My, yes, it has been a long time since I've seen gray eyes like those. "**

 **She reached out as if to stroke Annabeths cheek, but Annabeth stood up abruptly.**

 **"We really should go. "**

"You really should"

 **"Yes!" Grover swallowed his waxed paper and stood up. "The ringmaster is waiting! Right!"**

"Listen to the goat Percy!"

"Blahaha….Satyr!"

"Whatever"

 **I didn't want to leave. I felt full and content. Aunty Em was so nice. I wanted to stay with her a while.**

"A while could be forever" Reyna said realizing on who the monster was

 **"Please, dears," Aunty Em pleaded. "I so rarely get to be with children. Before you go, wont you at least sit for a pose?"**

 **"A pose?" Annabeth asked warily.**

 **"A photograph. I will use it to model a new statue set. Children are so popular, you see. Everyone loves children. "**

"Yes they do!" Amy cheered and clapped her hands happily

 **Annabeth shifted her weight from foot to foot. "I don't think we can, ma'am. Come on, Percy—"**

"Please tell me you listened?" Thalia asked

"You really don't know me at all" Percy replied

 **"Sure we can," I said. I was irritated with Annabeth for being so bossy, so rude to an old lady who'd just fed us for free.**

"Sure! Be mad at Annabeth who was trying to save your life" the said girl grumbled, Percy smiled and kissed her hand, which he was holding.

 **"Its just a photo, Annabeth. What's the harm?"**

"Oh I don't know… maybe becoming a statue for life! No harm at all" Trina said sarcastically. She and her friends had faced Medusa once, she knew who Trina was and who her parents were. Medusa was seriously not happy to see Trina, she wanted Trina turned to a statue and crumbled to pieces. Jessy had charmspeaked Medusa into following her instead of Trina, and Josh, had killed Medusa just in time to save her and everyone else.

 **"Yes, Annabeth," the woman purred. "No harm. "**

 **I could tell Annabeth didn't like it, but she allowed Aunty Em to lead us back out the front door, into the garden of statues.**

 **Aunty Em directed us to a park bench next to the stone satyr. "Now," she said, "I'll just position you correctly. The young girl in the middle, I think, and the two young gentlemen on either side. "**

 **"Not much light for a photo," I remarked.**

 **"Oh, enough," Aunty Em said. "Enough for us to see each other, yes?"**

 **"Where's your camera?" Grover asked.**

 **Aunty Em stepped back, as if to admire the shot. "Now, the face is the most difficult. Can you smile for me please, everyone? A large smile?"**

"She didn't answer Grover's question" Frank commented

 **Grover glanced at the cement satyr next to him, and mumbled, "That sure does look like Uncle Ferdinand. "**

 **"Grover," Aunty Em chastised, "look this way, dear. "**

 **She still had no camera in her hands.**

 **"Percy—" Annabeth said.**

 **Some instinct warned me to listen to Annabeth,**

"That's good" Everyone told Percy

"Always listen to Mommy, she's always right" the Jackson daughter's said in unison smiling at Annabeth

"That's rule number one" Trina said

"and blame daddy when something goes wrong, is rule number two" Amythyst said smiling brightly at Percy

"Do I want to know?" Percy asked

"No"

 **but I was fighting the sleepy feeling, the comfortable lull that came from the food and the old lady's voice.**

 **"I will just be a moment," Aunty Em said. "You know, I can't see you very well in this cursed veil. . . . "**

 **"Percy, somethings wrong," Annabeth insisted.**

 **"Wrong?" Aunty Em said, reaching up to undo the wrap around her head. "Not at all, dear. I have such noble company tonight. What could be wrong?"**

 **"That is Uncle Ferdinand!" Grover gasped.**

 **"Look away from her!" Annabeth shouted. She whipped her Yankees cap onto her head and vanished. Her invisible hands pushed Grover and me both off the bench.**

Almost everyone in the room was holding their breaths at this point, nobody said a word, they all wanted to know what would happen next.

 **I was on the ground, looking at Aunt Ems sandaled feet.**

 **I could hear Grover scrambling off in one direction, Annabeth in another. But I was too dazed to move.**

 **Then I heard a strange, rasping sound above me. My eyes rose to Aunty Ems hands, which had turned gnarled and warty, with sharp bronze talons for fingernails.**

 **I almost looked higher, but somewhere off to my left Annabeth screamed, "No! Don' t!"**

 **More rasping—the sound of tiny snakes, right above me, from . . . from about where Aunty Ems head would be.**

 **"Run!" Grover bleated. I heard him racing across the gravel, yelling, "Maia!" to kick-start his flying sneakers.**

 **I couldn't move. I stared at Aunty Ems gnarled claws, and tried to fight the groggy trance the old woman had put me in.**

 **"Such a pity to destroy a handsome young face," she told me soothingly. "Stay with me, Percy. All you have to do is look up. "**

"Daddy really is handsome" Amythyst said looking at Percy "That's why Trina's the pretty one because she got more from dad. She's the smart one too"

"and you're?" Rachel asked

"The daughter that's not moody?" she answered but it sounded more like a question "the little girl?"

"The nice one actually" Nick answered for her "Trina's not that nice"

"HEY!" the said girl yelled at Nick and threw her notebook at him

"See? Not nice"

"Amy. No one's the pretty one, since were both" Trina said and came over to hug her little sister

"Yeah. I have two very beautiful daughters" Percy said joining the hug and dragging Annabeth along with him

 **I fought the urge to obey. Instead I looked to one side and saw one of those glass spheres people put in gardens— a gazing ball. I could see Aunty Ems dark reflection in the orange glass; her headdress was gone, revealing her face as a shimmering pale circle. Her hair was moving, writhing like serpents.**

 **Aunty Em.**

 **Aunty "M. "**

 **How could I have been so stupid?**

"Yeah. How?" Thalia teased

"Shut up, Pinecone face"

 **Think, I told myself. How did Medusa die in the myth?**

 **But I couldn't think.**

"No shocker there" I'd like you to guess who said that

"Shut up"

 **Something told me that in the myth Medusa had been asleep when she was attacked by my namesake, Perseus. She wasn't anywhere near asleep now. If she wanted, she could take those talons right now and rake open my face.**

"She wouldn't since she wants to keep your handsome face" Hazel told him

She agreed with Medusa though, Percy really was handsome, in fact he looked like a god.

 **"The Gray-Eyed One did this to me, Percy," Medusa said, and she didn't sound anything like a monster. Her voice invited me to look up, to sympathize with a poor old grandmother. "Annabeth's mother, the cursed Athena, turned me from a beautiful woman into this. "**

"and because of that she wants to kill all of Athena's children, and grandchildren" Trina scowled remembering her encounter with Medusa

Percy and Annabeth looked over at their daughter slightly worried. What other monsters has their daughter encountered? And how many of those wanted to kill her just because they were her parents enemies?

While the rest of the people in the room who were not from the future were left wondering if being a legacy of two powerful demigods was even more dangerous than being a demigod. Sure, being a half-blood is really dangerous. But being a legacy of two half-bloods who had a lot of enemies could also be as dangerous. They could get revenge on their children when they couldn't get revenge on the half-bloods themselves.

 **"Don't listen to her!" Annabeth's voice shouted, somewhere in the statuary. "Run, Percy!"**

 **"Silence!" Medusa snarled. Then her voice modulated back to a comforting purr. "You see why I must destroy the girl, Percy. She is my enemy's daughter. I shall crush her statue to dust. But you, dear Percy, you need not suffer. "**

"That's exactly what she wanted to do to you" Nick told Trina

"I know right" she sighed

And everyone looked at her "Yes being a child of someone who has ton of enemies was extremely dangerous" they all thought to themselves

Those who knew that they would have children in the future started to worry about their own children. How many of their enemies would come after their kids? And how far would they go to get revenge?

 **"No," I muttered. I tried to make my legs move. . .**

 **"Do you really want to help the gods?" Medusa asked. "Do you understand what awaits you on this foolish quest, Percy? What will happen if you reach the Underworld? Do not be a pawn of the Olympians, my dear. You would be better off as a statue. Less pain. Less pain. "**

"Trust me lady. We'd all rather have pain than be turned to a statue" Leo said and everyone agreed

 **"Percy!" Behind me, I heard a buzzing sound, like a two-hundred-pound hummingbird in a nosedive. Grover yelled, "Duck!"**

 **I turned, and there he was in the night sky, flying in from twelve o'clock with his winged shoes fluttering, Grover, holding a tree branch the size of a baseball bat. His eyes were shut tight, his head twitched from side to side. He was navigating by ears and nose alone.**

"Grover the flying goat!" Amy cheered

 **"Duck!" he yelled again. "I'll get her!"**

 **That finally jolted me into action. Knowing Grover, I was sure he'd miss Medusa and nail me. I dove to one side.**

"Hey!" Grover glared at Percy

"At least that got me moving" he told him

 **Thwack!**

 **At first I figured it was the sound of Grover hitting a tree. Then Medusa roared with rage.**

 **"You miserable satyr," she snarled. "I'll add you to my collection!"**

 **"That was for Uncle Ferdinand!" Grover yelled back.**

 **I scrambled away and hid in the statuary while Grover swooped down for another pass.**

 **Ker-whack!**

 **"Arrgh!" Medusa yelled, her snake-hair hissing and spitting.**

"Go flying Goat boy!" everybody cheered and Grover was left blushing and laughing as he remembered that event

 **Right next to me, Annabeth's voice said, "Percy!"**

 **I jumped so high my feet nearly cleared a garden gnome. "Jeez! Don't do that!"**

 **Annabeth took off her Yankees cap and became visible.**

" **You have to cut her head off. "**

 **"What? Are you crazy? Lets get out of here. "**

 **"Medusa is a menace. She's evil. I'd kill her myself, but. . . " Annabeth swallowed, as if she were about to make a difficult admission.**

A lot of people in the room leaned forward in anticipation, waiting for what Annabeth was going to say. Sure, Annabeth admits when she makes a mistake or when she can't do something. But this was back then when Annabeth thought she shouldn't be friends with Percy because of their parents rivalries.

 **"But you've got the better weapon. Besides, I'd never get close to her. She'd slice me to bits because of my mother. You—you've got a chance. "**

 **"What? I cant—"**

 **"Look, do you want her turning more innocent people into statues?"**

"No" Everyone chorused

 **She pointed to a pair of statue lovers, a man and a woman with their arms around each other, turned to stone by the monster.**

 **Annabeth grabbed a green gazing ball from a nearby pedestal. "A polished shield would be better. " She studied the sphere critically. "The convexity will cause some distortion. The reflections size should be off by a factor of—"**

"What?" Frank asked

"You'll see" Percy answered him

 **"Would you speak English?"**

"That was English!" Trina scowled

 **"I am!" She tossed me the glass ball. "Just look at her in the glass. Never look at her directly. "**

 **"Hey, guys!" Grover yelled somewhere above us. "I think shes unconscious!"**

"And you jinxed it"

 **"Roooaaarrr!"**

"Why roar? I thought she had snakes in her head not lions"

 **"Maybe not," Grover corrected. He went in for another pass with the tree branch.**

 **"Hurry," Annabeth told me. "Grover's got a great nose, but he'll eventually crash."**

Grover frowned at Annabeth

"You did crash" she told him

 **I took out my pen and uncapped it. The bronze blade of Riptide elongated in my hand.**

 **I followed the hissing and spitting sounds of Medusa's hair.**

 **I kept my eyes locked on the gazing ball so I would only glimpse Medusa's reflection, not the real thing. Then, in the green tinted glass, I saw her.**

 **Grover was coming in for another turn at bat, but this time he flew a little too low. Medusa grabbed the stick and pulled him off course. He tumbled through the air and crashed into the arms of a stone grizzly bear with a painful "Ummphh!"**

"Yikes" Alex commented

 **Medusa was about to lunge at him when I yelled, "Hey!"**

 **I advanced on her, which wasn't easy, holding a sword and a glass ball. If she charged, I'd have a hard time defending myself.**

 **But she let me approach—twenty feet, ten feet.**

 **I could see the reflection of her face now. Surely it wasn't really that ugly. The green swirls of the gazing ball must be distorting it, making it look worse.**

"She really was that ugly" Jessy commented

 **"You wouldn't harm an old woman, Percy," she crooned. "I know you wouldn't. "**

"An old woman who isn't a monster, No. An old woman who is a monster, Yes." Percy said

 **I hesitated, fascinated by the face I saw reflected in the glass—the eyes that seemed to burn straight through the green tint, making my arms go weak.**

 **From the cement grizzly, Grover moaned, "Percy, don't listen to her!"**

 **Medusa cackled. "Too late. "**

 **She lunged at me with her talons.**

 **I slashed up with my sword, heard a sickening shlock!, then a hiss like wind rushing out of a cavern—the sound of a monster disintegrating.**

Everybody let go of the breath they didn't know they were holding

 **Something fell to the ground next to my foot. It took all my willpower not to look. I could feel warm ooze soaking into my sock, little dying snake heads tugging at my shoelaces.**

 **"Oh, yuck," Grover said. His eyes were still tightly closed, but I guess he could hear the thing gurgling and steaming. "Mega-yuck. "**

 **Annabeth came up next to me, her eyes fixed on the sky. She was holding Medusa's black veil. She said, "Don't move. "**

 **Very, very carefully, without looking down, she knelt and draped the monsters head in black cloth, then picked it up. It was still dripping green juice.**

"EW"

 **"Are you okay?" she asked me, her voice trembling.**

 **"Yeah," I decided, though I felt like throwing up my double cheeseburger. "Why didn't . . . why didn't the head evaporate?"**

 **"Once you sever it, it becomes a spoil of war," she said. "Same as your minotaur horn. But don't unwrap the head. It can still petrify you. "**

 **Grover moaned as he climbed down from the grizzly statue. He had a big welt on his forehead. His green rasta cap hung from one of his little goat horns, and his fake feet had been knocked off his hooves. The magic sneakers were flying aimlessly around his head.**

"Kind of like in the cartoons" Amy smiled "Grover the flying goat"

 **"The Red Baron," I said. "Good job, man. "**

 **He managed a bashful grin. "That really was not fun, though. Well, the hitting-her-with-a-stick part, that was fun.**

"Totally fun" Grover said

And everyone smiled at him, he really was a brave Satyr.

 **But crashing into a concrete bear? Not fun. "**

"Not at all" Grover added

 **He snatched his shoes out of the air. I recapped my sword. Together, the three of us stumbled back to the warehouse.**

 **We found some old plastic grocery bags behind the snack counter and double-wrapped Medusa's head. We plopped it on the table where we'd eaten dinner and sat around it, too exhausted to speak.**

 **Finally I said, "So we have Athena to thank for this monster?"**

"Actually Athena and Poseidon teamed up for that one" Amythyst said

And Annabeth looked at her like she grew another head

"What? It's true. They somehow sort of teamed up for it"

 **Annabeth flashed me an irritated look. "Your dad, actually. Don't you remember? Medusa was Poseidon's girlfriend. They decided to meet in my mothers temple. That's why Athena turned her into a monster. Medusa and her two sisters who had helped her get into the temple, they became the three gorgons. That's why Medusa wanted to slice me up,**

"She wanted to slice me up too" Trina told Annabeth

 **but she wanted to preserve you as a nice statue. She's still sweet on your dad. You probably reminded her of him. "**

"and I remind her of the two of you, so she's madder at me" Trina grumbled

 **My face was burning. "Oh, so now its my fault we met Medusa. "**

"Well…." Piper trailed off

 **Annabeth straightened. In a bad imitation of my voice, she said: "Its just a photo, Annabeth. Whats the harm?"**

 **"Forget it," I said. "You're impossible. "**

 **"You're insufferable. "**

 **"You're—"**

"Aw you were having your first love quarrel already" Jessy cooed "That's so cute"

 **"Hey!" Grover interrupted. "You two are giving me a migraine, and satyrs don't even get migraines. What are we going to do with the head?"**

"You two have given me tons of migraines" Grover looked pointedly at Percy and Annabeth who smiled sheepishly

 **I stared at the thing. One little snake was hanging out of a hole in the plastic. The words printed on the side of the bag said: WE APPRECIATE YOUR BUSINESS!**

 **I was angry, not just with Annabeth or her mom, but with all the gods for this whole quest, for getting us blown off the road and in two major fights the very first day out from camp. At this rate, wed never make it to L. A. alive, much less before the summer solstice.**

 **What had Medusa said?**

 **Do not be a pawn of the Olympians, my dear. You would be better off as a statue.**

 **I got up. "I'll be back. "**

"Oh no" Rachel muttered

 **"Percy," Annabeth called after me. "What are you—"**

"He's going to do something impulsive isn't he?" Calypso asked

"Uh huh" Grover answered

 **I searched the back of the warehouse until I found Medusa's office. Her account book showed her six most recent sales, all shipments to the Underworld to decorate Hades and Persephone's garden.**

"So that's where the statues came from!" Nico exclaimed then scowled at the mention of his step mother

 **According to one freight bill, the Underworlds billing address was DOA Recording Studios, West Hollywood, California. I folded up the bill and stuffed it in my pocket.**

 **In the cash register I found twenty dollars, a few golden drachmas, and some packing slips for Hermes Overnight Express, each with a little leather bag attached for coins. I rummaged around the rest of the office until I found the right-size box.**

"I have a bad feeling about what you're about to do" Reyna muttered

 **I went back to the picnic table, packed up Medusa's head, and filled out a delivery slip:**

"Seriously?" Jason asked

 **The Gods**

 **Mount Olympus**

 **600th Floor,**

 **Empire State Building**

 **New York, NY**

 **With best wishes,**

 **PERCY JACKSON**

Everyone who didn't know about this had their mouths wide open in shock. Sure the gods were really annoying at times. But they could never even think about sending that to the gods. The gods of Olympus who could vaporize them with just a blink of an eye.

 **"They're not going to like that," Grover warned. "They'll think you're impertinent."**

"He is impertinent" almost everyone said with Trina and Annabeth's voice a little louder than the rest

 **I poured some golden drachmas in the pouch. As soon as I closed it, there was a sound like a cash register. The package floated off the table and disappeared with a pop!**

 **"I am impertinent," I said.**

"Even he agrees" Rachel said

 **I looked at Annabeth, daring her to criticize.**

 **She didn't. She seemed resigned to the fact that I had a major talent for ticking off the gods. "Come on," she muttered. "We need a new plan. "**

"And a back up plan" Jason said

"And a back up plan for the back up plan" Piper added

"and a back up plan for the back up plans, back up plan" Leo continued and the three of them high fived and laughed looking over at Annabeth who scowled

"Well that's the end of the chapter" Nick said "Dinner time?"

"DINNER TIME!" Everyone cheered and made their way to the kitchen

 **HEY HOW IS EVERYBODY DOING? I HOPE YOU LIKE THIS CHAPTER :) TELL ME YOUR THOUGHTS IN A REVIEW! THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO HAD REVIEWED ON THE PREVIOUS CHAPTER. THANKS A MILLION DRACHMAS GUYS! :) SEE YOU NEXT CHAPTER! XOXO, CHINFEV1203**


	17. Dinner time and Girl Talks

Like all the other meals since they had started reading the books, tonight's dinner was filled with talks, laughter and the boys stuffing their mouths with as much food as possible. The menu for tonight was what Medusa had served Percy, Annabeth, and Grover during their first quest. Yep, their dinner were Cheeseburgers, Fries, and Milkshakes, there were also Tin Cans for Grover and Vegie Burger's for Piper. To say that the boys were thrilled was an understatement, they started gulping down the food even before all the girls could take a seat.

"I guess that last chapter made them extremely hungry" Hazel said

"They're always extremely hungry" Reyna muttered

"I know right?" Annabeth frowned at Percy who seemed like he was forgetting how to breath again with those burgers

Grover, Percy, Jason, Leo, and Frank were huddled together and it looked like they were betting on how many Tin Cans Grover can put on his mouth. While Nico who had a 'Doctors Note' was sitting beside the son's of Apollo: Will, Alex, and Nick.

Thalia was also stuffing her mouth with cheeseburgers, though she still managed to engage in a conversation with Calypso. Hazel was talking to Amythyst who was telling her all about the future children that Hazel and Frank had. Piper, Annabeth, and Reyna were also huddled together when Piper saw Trina who was feeding Josh some fries while they were having a conversation with Nick.

"Hey Jess" Piper called over to her daughter who was talking to Rachel "Come closer"

"What?" Jessy said dragging her seat closer to Piper

"What was that with Nick and Trina earlier?" she whispered though it caught Annabeth's attention

"I was wondering about that too" Annabeth whispered sneaking a look at Trina

Jessy shook her head and let out a giggle "Nick has a crush on Trina" she whispered to the two

Reyna and Rachel leaned closer towards the three girls

"What are you three whispering about?" Rachel asked

"Nick has a crush on Trina" Piper explained

"How does that work?" Reyna asked gesturing to Josh, Trina and Nick who were talking

"Josh and Nick are best friends. The four of us are actually. But….. Look I can't explain this while whispering" Jessy whispered as much as possible "I'm not a good whisperer and I can't whisper for very long. Come to my room later and I'll spill the beans kay?" she added flipping her blond hair. 'Jessy hasn't changed her hair and eye color' Piper thought she only changed it once, but after Alex arrived she's kept her hair and eyes at it's natural color.

"Okay" Annabeth, Piper, Rachel, and Reyna replied in their lowest voices so the others won't hear them

Jessy winked at them and returned to her milkshake.

"I wonder what would've happened if Medusa had turned you into a statue?" Nick asked teasing Trina as they ate

She rolled her eyes and leaned towards Nick who was in front of her "Then you could've stared at me the whole day, and gotten away with it" she smirked at him

"Shut up!" he threw a couple of fries at her that almost hit her in the nose "You're really not gonna let that go are you?"

"Never. Ever" she answered taking a bite of her cheeseburger

"Josh your girlfriends bullying me again. Make her stop" Nick whined at Josh

"Babe, your supposed to be on my side" Trina pouted at Josh

"Last I heard, you two aren't a side dish. So I'm not choosing sides" Josh replied placing more fries on Trina's plate.

Trina and Nick pouted and looked at Josh

"Papa Josh won't choose favorites" Trina teased

"But if he did he'll choose me" Nick bragged

"I'm his girlfriend!"

"I'm his best friend and best friend beats girlfriend any day, Trina"

"I was his best friend before I became his girlfriend. Beat that!"

"Girl best friend maybe. But Josh and I are best bros. He'll choose me!"

Trina was about to give a retort but before she could, Josh had shoved a mouthful of fries in her mouth and kissed her cheek at the same time, that immediately shut her up.

"Thank you Josh!" Nick exclaimed and ducked as Trina threw fries at him.

"Did I seriously become a professor?" Will asked

"For the third time, Yes!" Alex exclaimed frowning at Will "I repeat. You are one of my college professors, and you give me a hard time just because I'm your half brother"

"That does sound like something you would do, Will" Nico said

"He's all like 'You're my brother, you're a son of Apollo, I expect only the best from you.' Blah blah blah" Alex scowled "He gives me twice the homework! Will's such a medical nerd"

"Tell me about it!" Nico agreed

Will Solace frowned at his half-brother and at his boyfriend. He never thought he'll actually be a professor. He thought he'd only be a doctor for the rest of his life. Sure he joked about it to his mom that he'll become a doctor and then teach those who want to become doctors as well. But he never thought he'd actually do it.

"Hey weren't we supposed to be playing capture the flag after dinner?" Jason asked

"I'm too full to play capture the flag" Leo said and Percy agreed by burping loudly

"I already had a battle plan!" Annabeth argued

"You always have a plan" Everyone told her

"Let's just toss a coin to decide again" Hazel suggested

"Works for me" Thalia agreed pulling out a drachma from her pocket

"Heads we play, Tails we don't" Reyna said

Thalia tossed the coin and it landed on…..

"TAILS!" Leo screamed and Annabeth grumbled

"It's settled then. Let's just move capture the flag to another day" Jason told everyone

"We're just going to keep moving it till we don't do it at all" Annabeth grumbled

"Relax Wisegirl" Percy said placing an arm around her and kissing her cheek "There's still plenty of books, that means plenty of time to play capture the flag"

Later that night Piper, Annabeth, Reyna, and Rachel all went to Jessy's room to get answers. They found her outside her room, leaning on the wall with one of her hands on her hips, and she was facing Alex who was trying to talk to her. Jessy looked annoyed, but from where Piper was standing she could see that Jessy didn't want Alex to stop talking or to leave just yet.

Jessy shook her head at Alex, and when she did she caught a glimpse of the girls.

"Can we do this some other time, Alex" she said and gestured towards Piper, Annabeth, Reyna, and Rachel. He looked at the girls, smiled at them, and nodded his head at Jessy "Sure" then he turned around and walked away.

"What was that about?" Piper asked looking over at Alex's retreating figure

Jessy ignored her and opened her door "Let's talk inside" and walked in not bothering to wait for the girls. They all entered the room and sat on Jessy's bed. The girls looked around Jessy's room and saw that her room was a combination of Pink and White. Her room had pink walls, her pink bed was at the center of the room, which had pink and white pillows, it had white cabinets on both sides on top of her bedside cabinets were white lamps. She also had two white doors on either side of her bed. On one side of her room was a huge mirror, it had a white table and white chair on the mirrors left, with books on top of it and a school bag, on the mirrors right was a pink chair and pink vanity table filled with make up, also with a vanity mirror and a ring light. Opposite to that on the other side of her room, next to the door that they had entered was a huge white shelf that was filled with stuffed animals, and dolls. The wall in front of her bed had a few framed pictures, and polaroid pictures clipped on a white christmas light.

"Bathroom and walk in closet?" Piper asked pointing at the two doors on either side of her bed and Jessy nodded

"There's supposed to be windows over there" she said pointing to the side of the room that had her tables "But the fates probably don't want us to see the outside or something"

"Your rooms too pink and girly" Rachel commented looking around the room

"That could describe me as well" She replied "Anyway, you didn't come here to talk about my room"

"So what's the deal with Nick and Trina?" Annabeth asked

"and you and Alex" Piper added

"What you saw earlier. When you leave, leave it here" she gestured around her room "and do not tell my brother"

"Please" she added

"You have to tell us then" Piper smirked at her

"Fine. But later. First agenda, Nick and Trina" she smiled

"So?" Reyna gestured for her to start

"When Nick arrived at Camp when we were twelve, he immediately had a crush on Trina. But he also saw that Josh and Trina had a thing for each other, but those two were a bit confusing back then." she paused "Also on that first summer that Nick was at Camp, he and Josh became best friends, the four of us had a quest that summer and became really close with Nick. Especially Josh and Nick, they're best bro's."

"And?" Piper said

"Nick never really made a move on Trina because he knew Josh likes her, and he liked being best friends with Josh. But we also knew that Nick likes Trina, that starring thing happened before we had a quest, he was starring at her, then through the years it became an inside joke."

"and he still likes her now" Annabeth asked

"He denies it. Trina believes it. But he can't fool me. I know there's still something there, he's just hiding it because she's his best friends girlfriend and Nick knows she'll never like him back."

"What does Josh have to say about that?"

"Those two talked bro to bro about it, all I know is that they don't let it get in the way of their friendship, and Nick's very supportive with Trina and Josh's relationship anyway." she shrugged

"Two boys who happen to be best friends, like the same girl, doesn't it get awkward though?" Reyna asked

"Nope" Jessy smiled and picked up a white hairbrush and started brushing her hair "You'll see when we spend more days here"

"Okay" Piper said "Now to you and Alex"

Jessy groaned "I was hoping you'd forget about that"

"Nope Piper didn't, and we didn't either" Annabeth said "Spill"

Jessy stood up and took one of the pink teddy bears from her shelf and sat back on the bed next to Reyna "This bear plays a song when you squeeze its hands and feet. A different song for each hand and foot" she told them

"He gave you that?" Rachel asked and she nodded

"This was a birthday present from him" she placed the bear on her lap and looked at the four girls

"He was trying to apologize earlier, he said he still loves me. But…." her voice faltered

"But what?" Piper asked

"Would I be stupid if I take him back?"

" " Annabeth said "Nobody is stupid for following their heart, just always remember your worth and that your happiness should come first."

"Everybody deserves a second chance, right?" Reyna added "If you still want to give him that, then go for it"

"I may not be allowed to fall in love being the oracle and all, but what I do know is if you love someone, it's not always all smiles and sunshine, you'd face storms and fires" Rachel laughed remembering the first prophecy she told "But if you're really meant to be together, you'll eventually find your way back to each other"

Piper smiled at her friends who were trying to comfort her future daughter, she hugged Jessy.

"Jess, you would never ever be stupid for falling in love, and as your mom, your future mom I will always support you decision. I'm right behind you whether you choose to get back to him or not. You will always have my support"

"Awww the four of you are the best" she said hugging each one of them "Alex and I really haven't gotten to talk much yet. But if he approaches me again to talk… well… let's just see and find out"

"Hey lets all see if Trina's still awake so the six of us can have girl talk and stuff" Jessy suggested and got up from the bed. The five of them walked towards Trina's room and knocked on the door, after she knocked a few times and nobody was answering, Jessy opened the door and saw that Trina wasn't there.

Jessy rolled her eyes and looked at the four "Come on. I know where she is"

They walked towards Josh's room and Jessy didn't bother knocking, she opened the door and they saw Josh and Trina making out on the bed.

"Get up young lady!" Jessy yelled putting both of her hands on her hips

"Jess!" Josh screamed throwing a pillow at his sister who laughed as she avoided the pillow "Oh Hi" Josh said as he saw the other four and waved at them

"Girl talk?" Trina asked as she saw the girls

"Yes. We need you" Jessy said pulling Trina's arm and yanking her away from the bed as Josh gave Trina a quick kiss on the cheek before she stood up.

Jessy pouted

"I didn't forget" Josh said and kissed her sister on the cheek as well "Goodnight sis"

"Goodnight brother dearest" she told him and ushered the girls out of Josh's room and back to hers.

The six girls got Amy, Hazel, Calypso, and Thalia to join them as well and they all spent the night talking and laughing in Jessy's room. They talked about the boys, their camps, and pretty much everything they could think of. Jessy even offered to clean everybody's eyebrows as they talked, and gave each of them face masks to put on before bed.

 **HELLO EVERYONE! HOW DO YOU LIKE THIS CHAPTER? SEND ME YOUR THOUGHTS IN A REVIEW! :) SEE YOU NEXT CHAPTER! XOXO, CHINFEV1203**


	18. Chapter 12: Trina

The next day, the girls were still talking and laughing about the previous night. While the boys just ate and wondered what they could possibly be talking about. Finally, Percy couldn't take it anymore and asked the girls what they were all laughing about.

"Its a secret" All the girls said in unison and laughed

"Girls are confusing" Leo muttered and all the boys agreed

After having their breakfast they all went inside the living room and sat on their respective chairs. Nick handed Trina the book, who immediately started looking for the right page.

 **12\. WE GET ADVICE FROM A POODLE** Trina read and paused

"A poodle?!" Jason asked

"Yep a poodle"

"That doesn't happen to be Frank, right?" Leo asked

"Not Frank"

"A poodle as in a poodle, not a demigod who can shape shift into a poodle" Annabeth told him

"I miss our baby" Trina said looking at Josh

"Your WHAT!?" Percy, Annabeth, Piper and Jason exclaimed

"Our baby. Our dog. Josh and I have a dog. Jeez" Trina explained looking at their parents weirdly while Josh was trying his best not to laugh

"Oh Okay. Okay"

"I wish I caught that on camera" Leo said laughing so hard at his friends reaction while clutching his stomach. The rest of the people in the room were laughing so hard too. The four demigods parents instincts were slowly coming out as the days passed by.

 **We were pretty miserable that night.**

"Who wouldn't be?"

 **We camped out in the woods, a hundred yards from the main road, in a marshy clearing that local kids had obviously been using for parties. The ground was littered with flattened soda cans and fast-food wrappers.**

Grover scowled as he remembered how much litter there was

 **We'd taken some food and blankets from Aunty Ems, but we didn't dare light a fire to dry our damp clothes. The Furies and Medusa had provided enough excitement for one day.**

"Excitement?!"

 **We didn't want to attract anything else.**

"You might attract bugs though" Rachel muttered

 **We decided to sleep in shifts. I volunteered to take first watch.**

 **Annabeth curled up on the blankets and was snoring as soon as her head hit the ground. Grover fluttered with his flying shoes to the lowest bough of a tree, put his back to the trunk, and stared at the night sky.**

 **"Go ahead and sleep," I told him. "I'll wake you if there's trouble. "**

 **He nodded, but still didn't close his eyes. "It makes me sad,** **Percy** **. "**

"The quest?" Calypso asked

"No" Grover answered

 **"What does? The fact that you signed up for this stupid** **quest** **?"**

 **"No. This makes me sad. " He pointed at all the garbage on the ground. "And the sky. You cant even see the stars.**

Calypso frowned. That is really sad she thought

 **They've polluted the sky. This is a terrible time to be a satyr. "**

 **"Oh, yeah. I guess you'd be an environmentalist. "**

 **He glared at me. "Only a human wouldn't be. Your species is clogging up the world so fast . . . ah, never mind. Its useless to lecture a human.**

"HEY!" everyone who were human scowled at Grover

 **At the rate things are going, I'll never find Pan. "**

 **"Pam? Like the cooking spray?"**

"PAN!" Grover yelled

 **"Pan!" he cried indignantly. "P-A-N. The great god Pan! What do you think I want a searchers license for?"**

 **A strange breeze rustled through the clearing, temporarily overpowering the stink of trash and muck. It brought the smell of berries and wildflowers and clean rainwater, things that might've once been in these woods. Suddenly I was nostalgic for something Id never known.**

"Pan" Grover whispered smiling

 **"Tell me** **about** **the search," I said.**

 **Grover looked at me cautiously, as if he were afraid I was just making fun.**

"I kind of was" Grover admitted

 **"The God of Wild Places disappeared two thousand years ago," he told me. "A sailor off the coast of Ephesos heard a mysterious voice crying out from the shore, Tell them that the great god Pan has died! When humans heard the news, they believed it. They've been pillaging Pans kingdom ever since. But for the satyrs, Pan was our lord and** **master** **. He protected us and the wild places of the earth. We refuse to believe that he died. In every generation, the bravest satyrs pledge their lives to finding Pan. They search the earth, exploring all the wildest places, hoping to find where he is hidden, and wake him from his sleep."**

Annabeth, Percy, Nico, Rachel and Grover all smiled remembering when they had seen Pan during their quest

 **"And you want to be a searcher. "**

 **"Its my life's dream," he said. "My** **father** **was a searcher. And my Uncle Ferdinand . . . the statue you saw back there—"**

 **"Oh, right, sorry. "**

 **Grover shook his head. "Uncle Ferdinand knew the risks. So did my dad. But I'll** **succeed** **. I'll be the first searcher to** **return** **alive. "**

"First?" Leo asked

"Yeah. First" Grover answered

"WHY?!" everyone who didn't know asked

"It'll be explained" Percy was the one to answer them this time

 **"Hang on—the first?"**

 **Grover took his reed pipes out of his pocket. "No searcher has ever come back. Once they set out, they disappear. They're never seen alive** **again** **. "**

Grover sighed knowing why those Satyr's had never returned alive

 **"Not once in two thousand years?"**

 **"No. "**

 **"And your dad? You have no idea what happened to him?"**

 **"None. "**

"And you're okay with that?" Reyna asked while at the same time thinking that the Satyrs were really different from their Fauns

"All the Satyr's new the risk" Grover simply said

 **"But you still want to go," I said, amazed. "I mean, you really think you'll be the one to find Pan?"**

Everyone who knew that Grover was the one to find Pan smiled at him proudly

 **"I have to believe that,** **Percy** **. Every searcher does. It's the only thing that keeps us from despair when we look at what humans have done to the world. I have to believe Pan can still be awakened. "**

 **I stared at the orange haze of the sky and tried to understand how Grover could pursue a dream that seemed so hopeless. Then** **again** **, was I any better?**

 **"How are we going to get into the Underworld?" I asked him. "I mean, what chance do we have** **again** **st a god?"**

"Do you really want that answered?" Calypso asked

"No"

 **"I don't know," he admitted. "But back at Medusa's, when you were searching her office? Annabeth was telling me—"**

 **"Oh, I forgot. Annabeth will have a plan all figured out. "**

"That's mean, Daddy" Amethyst said frowning at Percy who smiled at her apologetically

 **"Don't be so hard on her,** **Percy** **. She's had a tough life, but she's a good person. After all, she forgave me. . . . " His voice faltered.**

"What did you do to Annabeth?" Hazel asked

 **"What do you mean?" I asked. "Forgave you for what?"**

 **Suddenly, Grover seemed very interested in playing notes on his pipes.**

 **"Wait a minute," I said. "Your first keeper job was five years ago. Annabeth has been at camp five years. She wasn't . . . I mean, your first assignment that went wrong—"**

 **"I can't talk** **about** **it," Grover said, and his quivering lower lip suggested he'd start crying if I pressed him.**

Thalia patted Grover's back "Stop blaming yourself Goat boy" she told him

 **"But as I was saying, back at Medusa's, Annabeth and I agreed there's something strange going on with this** **quest** **. Something isn't what it seems. "**

"Huh?" Leo asked

 **"Well, duh. I'm getting blamed for stealing a thunderbolt that Hades took. "**

Nico frowned at Percy. His dad was also always getting blamed for everything.

 **"That's not what I mean," Grover said. "The Fur—The Kindly Ones were sort of holding back. Like Mrs. Dodds at Yancy Academy . . . why did she wait so long to try to kill you? Then on the bus, they just weren't as aggressive as they could've been. "**

"They seemed really aggressive to me" Trina said

 **"They seemed plenty aggressive to me. "**

"Like father, Like daughter" Annabeth said

 **Grover shook his head. "They were screeching at us: Where is it? Where?"**

 **"Asking** **about** **me," I said.**

"You do know you're not an it, right?" Piper asked

"I know" Percy grumbled

 **"Maybe . . . but Annabeth and I, we both got the feeling they weren't asking** **about** **a person. They said Where is it? They seemed to be asking** **about** **an object. "**

 **"That doesn't make sense. "**

"Yes it does" Trina argued

"I take back what I said earlier" Annabeth said "I think she's more like me"

 **"I know. But if we've misunderstood something** **about** **this** **quest** **, and we only have nine days to find the** **master** **bolt. . . . " He looked at me like he was hoping for answers, but I didn't have any.**

"When does he have the answers?" Thalia scoffed and then received a glare from Percy

"Well there was this time when he…." Jason paused

"How about when he…." Leo said

"I don't know if they actually forgot or if they're just teasing me"

"Maybe Thalia's right" Frank teased getting the hint at what Jason and Leo were doing. Percy does have the answers at times, but it's always fun to tease him.

 **I thought** **about** **what Medusa had said: I was being used by the gods. What lay ahead of me was** **worse** **than petrification. "I haven't been** **straight** **with you," I told Grover. "I don't care** **about** **the** **master** **bolt. I agreed to go to the Underworld so I could** **bring** **back my mother. "**

"We all know that" Jessy said

"Sure cause you've already read and heard all of my thoughts" Percy grumbled "I wish I'd get to hear all of yours too just to be fair"

"Nah. Hearing yours is better" Thalia smirked

 **Grover blew a soft note on his pipes. "I know that,** **Percy** **. But are you sure that's the only reason?"**

"What other reason could there be?" Hazel asked

But Piper knew. She had done the same thing a few times as well, trying to make her dad to notice her.

 **"I'm not doing it to help my** **father** **. He doesn't care** **about** **me. I don't care** **about** **him. "**

"Of course you care about grandpa. We're a family" Amethyst said "Family means nobody gets left behind or forgotten"

"Lilo and Stitch?" Percy asked her

And she nodded smiling

"You forgot the Ohana part" Percy told her

"Should I repeat it then?" she asked

"Yes"

"Ohana means Family. Family means nobody gets left behind or forgotten"

Annabeth smiled she already knew that Amethyst had inherited Percy's loyalty.

 **Grover gazed down from his tree branch. "Look,** **Percy** **, I'm not as smart as Annabeth. I'm not as brave as you. But I'm pretty good at reading emotions. You're glad your dad is alive. You feel good that hes claimed you, and part of you wants to make him proud. That's why you mailed Medusa's head to** **Olympus** **. You wanted him to notice what you'd done. "**

A few "Oh's" were heard among the group and a few nodded in understanding. They too at a point in their lives had done something so that their godly or mortal parent could notice them, and be proud of them. A lot of them could relate to Percy on that one.

 **"Yeah? Well maybe satyr emotions work differently than human emotions. Because you're wrong. I don't care what he thinks. "**

"Denial!" Amethyst cried out

 **Grover pulled his feet up onto the branch. "Okay,** **Percy** **. Whatever. "**

 **"Besides, I haven't done anything worth bragging** **about** **. We barely got out of New York and were stuck here with no money and no way west. "**

 **Grover looked at the night sky, like he was thinking** **about** **that problem. "How** **about** **I take first watch, huh? You get some sleep. "**

"Good Idea" Rachel said "Percy seems stressed out"

 **I wanted to protest, but he started to play Mozart, soft and sweet, and I turned away, my eyes stinging. After a few bars of Piano Concerto no. 12, I was asleep.**

"Hey! I can play that too!" Nick exclaimed "We should totally do a duet or something"

 **In my dreams, I stood in a dark cavern before a gaping pit. Gray mist creatures churned all around me, whispering rags of smoke that I somehow knew were the spirits of the dead.**

Annabeth, Percy, and Nico froze. That pit was too familiar. The three of them all share one thing in common: They hated that pit and they hated for being there.

 **They tugged at my clothes, trying to pull me back, but I felt compelled to walk forward to the very edge of the chasm.**

 **Looking down made me dizzy.**

 **The pit yawned so wide and was so completely black, I knew it must be bottomless. Yet I had a feeling that something was trying to rise from the abyss, something huge and evil.**

"Very Hug and definitely very Evil" Percy muttered under his breath

 **The little hero, an amused voice echoed far down in the darkness. Too weak, too** **young** **, but perhaps you will do.**

 **The voice felt ancient—cold and heavy. It wrapped around me like sheets of lead.**

 **They have misled you, boy, it said. Barter with me. I will give you what you want.**

'He wouldn't have. He would have just tricked me like he did with the others' Percy thought

It was a good thing he never bartered with him, who knows what would've happened with Percy. He probably never had his daughters, or Annabeth.

 **A shimmering image hovered over the void: my mother, frozen at the moment she'd dissolved in a shower of gold. Her face was distorted with pain, as if the Minotaur were still squeezing her neck. Her eyes looked directly at me, pleading: Go!**

 **I tried to cry out, but my voice wouldn't work.**

 **Cold laughter echoed from the chasm.**

 **An invisible force pulled me forward. It would drag me into the pit unless I stood firm.**

 **Help me rise, boy. The voice became hungrier.** **Bring** **me the bolt. Strike a blow** **again** **st the treacherous gods!**

 **The spirits of the dead whispered around me, No! Wake!**

"Yes. Wake up now" a few muttered while leaning forward towards the book

 **The image of my mother began to fade. The thing in the pit tightened its unseen grip around me.**

 **I realized it wasn't interested in pulling me in. It was using me to pull itself out.**

 **Good, it murmured. Good.**

 **Wake! the dead whispered. Wake!**

 **Someone was shaking me.**

 **My eyes opened, and it was daylight.**

"oh thank goodness!" Jessy sighed feeling relieved and a lot of people in the room could agree with her on that one.

 **"Well," Annabeth said, "the zombie lives. "**

"Now Annabeth" Thalia said like she was a Professor "We are all pretty sure that the zombie is Nico"

"HEY!"

"You know it's true corpse breath"

"Shut up, Pinecone face"

"You can't tell me to shut up"

Thalia was about to give a retort but was shut up by Trina who had continued reading while throwing a glare at Thalia daring her to interrupt

 **I was trembling from the dream. I could still feel the grip of the chasm monster around my chest. "How long was I asleep?"**

 **"Long enough for me to cook breakfast. " Annabeth tossed me a bag of nacho-flavored corn chips from Aunty Ems snack bar.**

"That's not breakfast Annabeth" Piper said

"We didn't have anything else" Annabeth replied "Besides I don't know how to cook anyway"

"Yes you do" Amythyst said

"Uhm No I don't" Annabeth said slowly

"Yes you do" Trina repeated what her sister had said earlier "You cook for us everyday"

"I must've learned then" Annabeth shrugged

 **"And Grover went exploring. Look, he found a friend. "**

 **My eyes had trouble focusing.**

"Maybe I need to check your eyes too" Will said looking at Percy "You probably need glasses like Jason"

"No. I'm good" Percy said

"I still have to give you a check up later" Will argued "Are you two going to help?" he asked his brothers who immediately nodded.

 **Grover was sitting cross-legged on a blanket with something fuzzy in his lap, a dirty, unnaturally pink stuffed animal.**

 **No. It wasn't a stuffed animal. It was a pink poodle.**

"I want a pink poodle!" Jessy cried out and then glared at Jason

"What?" he asked her

"I wanted a pink poodle but you won't let me have one" she grumbled crossing her arms across her chest

"Why not?" Piper asked

"Something about that dad didn't think she could take care of a dog, and that she failed her math test" Josh answered for his sister who was still frowning at Jason

 **The poodle yapped at me suspiciously. Grover said, "No, he's not. "**

"He's not what?" Nico asked

"I forgot" Grover answered rubbing the back of his neck

"What do you mean you forgot?" Leo was the one to ask this one

"I forgot. A lot of things happened during that quest"

 **I blinked. "Are you . . . talking to that thing?"**

"the poodle wasn't a thing" Rachel frowned "the poodle is a living breathing being"

"I know" Percy said shrugging

 **The poodle growled.**

 **"This thing," Grover warned, "is our ticket west. Be nice to him. "**

"The pink poodle is a he?" Jessy asked confused as to why a he would be pink. When pink is usually for girls.

"Don't classify color with gender, Jess. That's discriminating" Josh scolded his sister

 **"You can talk to animals?"**

"Well…. he is part barnyard animal" Leo snickered

"I want to trample you under my hoof right now, Valdez"

"I'm curious" Rachel said then turned to Frank "You can shape shift to animals right?"

Frank nodded

"Can you talk to animals too? Even when your not in animal form?"

"Nope" he answered

 **Grover ignored the** **quest** **ion. "** **Percy** **, meet Gladiola. Gladiola,** **Percy** **. "**

A few people snickered at the name.

 **I stared at Annabeth, figuring she'd crack up at this practical joke they were playing on me, but she looked deadly serious.**

 **"I'm not saying hello to a pink poodle," I said. "Forget it. "**

"You say hello to my dog all the time" Trina said

"Our" Josh added gesturing to him and Trina

"Right" Trina agreed "Our dog"

"Don't forget our doberman" Amythyst sing songed "Dad says hi to him too"

 **"** **Percy** **," Annabeth said. "I said hello to the poodle. You say hello to the poodle. "**

"Hey! That's what I said!" Trina and Amythyst said in unison

"Though we called you dad and it wasn't a poodle" Trina added

 **The poodle growled.**

 **I said hello to the poodle.**

 **Grover explained that he'd come across Gladiola in the woods and they'd struck up a conversation.**

"You make it sound like Uncle Grover was flirting with the poodle" Jessy laughed

 **The poodle had run away from a rich local family, who'd posted a $200 reward for his** **return** **. Gladiola didn't really want to go back to his family, but he was willing to if it meant helping Grover.**

"That's so nice" Calypso cooed

 **"How does Gladiola know** **about** **the reward?" I asked.**

 **"He read the signs," Grover said. "Duh. "**

"Yeah Percy. Duh" Rachel rolled her eyes

 **"Of course," I said. "Silly me. "**

 **"So we turn in Gladiola," Annabeth explained in her best strategy voice, "we get money, and we buy tickets to Los Angeles. Simple. "**

"Was it really?" Nick asked

"Not. At. All" the three who went on the quest replied

 **I thought** **about** **my dream—the whispering voices of the dead, the thing in the chasm, and my mothers face, shimmering as it dissolved into gold. All that might be waiting for me in the West.**

 **"Not another bus," I said warily.**

 **"No," Annabeth agreed.**

"Good" everyone except the three muttered

 **She pointed downhill, toward train tracks I hadn't been able to see last night in the dark. "There's an Amtrak station half a mile that way. According to Gladiola, the westbound train leaves at noon. "**

"And that's the end of the chapter" Trina said closing the book and handing it to her boyfriend "Your turn babe"

Josh kissed her cheek before getting the book from her and finding the right page

"Why'd you close the book?" he asked her "Now it's harder to find the page"

She shrugged "Don't you like a little challenge?"

"Dating you is already a big of a challenge" he said still browsing through the pages

She frowned ans threw a glare at the boy sitting next to her

"I'm kidding" he said and kissed her on the cheek again

"Okay here's the right page" Josh said and cleared his throat

" **Chapter 13. I PLUNGE TO MY DEATH"** he read

 **HELLO GUYS! HOW IS EVERYONE DOING? SO WHEN I BROWSED THROUGH MY OLD STORIES I REALIZED THAT I SPELLED AMYTHYST NAME DIFFERENTLY IN THOSE. IN MY OLD STORIES I HAD SPELLED IT AS "AMETHYST" I GUESS I MIGHT HAVE FORGOTTEN THAT WHEN I STARTED THIS STORY. SO STARTING NEXT CHAPTER I WOULD BE USING THE ORIGINAL SPELLING OF HER NAME WHICH IS "AMETHYST" :) ANYWAYS…. HOW DO YOU LIKE THIS CHAPTER GUYS? DO YOU LIKE IT? HATE IT? THINK IT NEEDS IMPROVEMENT? LEAVE ME YOUR COMMENTS IN A REVIEW! OH AND THANK YOU TO THOSE WHO HAVE REVIEWED LAST TIME! IT REALLY MEANS A LOT :) AGAIN DON'T FORGET TO LEAVE A REVIEW :) XOXO,CHINFEV1203**


	19. Chapter 13: Josh

**13\. I PLUNGE TO MY DEATH** Josh read

 **We spent two days on the Amtrak train, heading west through hills, over rivers, past amber waves of grain.**

 **We weren't attacked once, but I didn't relax. I felt that we were traveling around in a display case, being watched from above and maybe from below, that something was waiting for the right opportunity.**

"When you're in a quest you're always being watched from above" Reyna said

 **I tried to keep a low profile because my name and picture were splattered over the front pages** **of several East Coast newspapers. The Trenton Register-News showed a photo taken by a tourist as I got off the Greyhound bus. I had a wild look in my eyes. My sword was a metallic blur in my hands. It might've been a baseball bat or a lacrosse stick.**

"or both" Rachel said

"What?" Hazel asked

"To some mortals it might look like a baseball bat, and to some a lacrosse stick. It depends on how they perceive it." she explained

 **The pictures caption read:**

 **Twelve-year-old Percy** **Jackson, wanted for questioning in the Long Island disappearance of his mother two weeks ago, is shown here fleeing from the bus where he accosted several elderly female passengers.**

"When in reality they accosted me!" Percy grumbled. The mist is rarely in his favor.

 **The bus exploded on an east New Jersey roadside shortly after Jackson** **fled the scene. Based on eyewitness accounts, police believe the boy may be traveling with two teenage accomplices. His stepfather, Gabe Ugliano, has offered a cash reward for information leading to his capture.**

"WHAT?!" Trina shouted

"Seriously?" Rachel and Hazel said at the same time

While the rest grumbled under their breath in annoyance with Gabe Ugliano.

"Please tell me you got your revenge on him?" Thalia asked

"Sort of?" Percy answered vaguely. They were all going to find out later anyway.

Alex didn't know who was worst, this Gabe Ugliano or his own step father. He was pretty sure his step father wouldn't offer cash but he was also sure that he'd try to capture Alex himself.

While Annabeth was thinking that although she and her step mother didn't have a great relationship at first, at least she wasn't anything like Gabe.

Even Rachel had thought about her parents, at least her parents would say rescue, rather than capture.

 **"Don't worry," Annabeth told me. "Mortal police could never find us. " But she didn't sound so sure.**

 **The rest of the day I spent alternately pacing the length of the train (because I had a really hard time sitting still) or looking out the windows.**

"Don't we all have a hard time sitting still?" Leo smiled widely

 **Once, I spotted a family of centaurs galloping across a wheat field, bows at the ready, as they hunted lunch. The little boy centaur, who was the size of a second-grader on a pony, caught my eye and waved. I looked around the passenger car, but nobody else had noticed. The adult** **riders all had their faces buried in laptop computers or magazines.**

"Another reason why mortals don't see monsters" Reyna muttered and even Rachel agreed on that one

"Demigods actually look around, just in case their are monsters" Will said

"But wait…" Piper said looking at the future kids "How does that work for you guys?"

"What do you mean?" Jessy asked

"You guys have monster safe phones. How does that work during a quest if you have your faces buried in phones, wont it get you distracted?" Hazel said catching on to what Piper had thought

Jessy and Trina rolled their eyes

"We don't use our phones during a quest, and if we do only for emergencies" Trina explained

"and on regular days when we're at school we still try to be alert as much as we can even when we're using our phones"

"Also the fact that there's this Satyr app program in our phones that works like a Satyr. It can sense a monster like how a Satyr can smell when a monsters is near, but it can't sense who or what the monster is. It just sorts of notifies us" Josh explained further

"Even uses a Satyr emoticon" Nick smiled

"Was designed by a few Hermes kids, they said they designed it to make demigods live longer" Alex added

 **Another time, toward evening, I saw something huge moving through the woods. I could've sworn it was a lion, except that lions don't live wild in America, and this thing was the size of a Hummer. Its fur glinted gold in the evening light. Then it leaped through the trees and was gone.**

"The Nemean Lion" Jason muttered under his breath

 **Our reward money for returning Gladiola the poodle had only been enough to purchase tickets as far as Denver. We couldn't get berths in the sleeper car, so we dozed in our seats. My neck got stiff. I tried not to drool in my sleep, since Annabeth was sitting right next to me.**

Annabeth rolled her eyes and smirked at Percy

 **Grover kept snoring and bleating and waking me up. Once, he shuffled around and his fake foot fell off. Annabeth and I had to stick it back on before any of the other passengers noticed.**

"Wonder what the mortals would see though, with the mist" Frank mused

"We still can't risk it" Annabeth said

 **"So," Annabeth asked me, once we'd gotten Grover's sneaker readjusted. "Who wants your help?"**

"Huh?" Amethyst asked

 **"What do you mean?"**

"Yeah what do you mean?" Amethyst agreed

 **"When you were asleep just now, you mumbled, I won't help you. Who were you dreaming about?"**

 **I was reluctant to say anything. It was the second time I'd dreamed about** **the evil voice from the pit. But it bothered me so much I finally told her.**

 **Annabeth was quiet for a long time. "That doesn't sound like Hades. He always appears on a black throne, and he never laughs. "**

"That's not true" Nico said "He laughs…..sometimes"

Everyone looked at him not believing what he had just said

"He does!"

 **"He offered my mother in trade. Who else could do that?"**

 **"I guess . . . if he meant, Help me rise from the Underworld. If he wants war with the Olympians. But why ask you to bring** **him the master** **bolt if he already has it?"**

"Because he doesn't have it!" Nico cried frowning

 **I shook my head, wishing I knew the answer. I thought about** **what Grover had told me, that the Furies on the bus seemed to have been looking for something.**

 **Where is it? Where?**

 **Maybe Grover sensed my emotions. He snorted in his sleep, muttered something about** **vegetables, and turned his head.**

"Nope he was just hungry" Thalia said and looked over at her Satyr friend

 **Annabeth readjusted his cap so it covered his horns. "Percy, you can't barter with Hades. You know that, right? He's deceitful, heartless, and greedy.**

"Father's not heartless" Nico said

 **I don't care if his Kindly Ones weren't as aggressive this time—"**

"How aggressive do you want them to be?!" Rachel exclaimed

 **"This time?" I asked. "You mean you've run into them before?"**

Thalia, Annabeth and Grover all looked at each other and bowed their heads

 **Her hand crept up to her necklace. She fingered a glazed white bead painted with the image of a pine tree, one of her clay end-of-summer tokens. "Lets just say I've got no love for the Lord of the Dead. You can't be tempted to make a deal for your mom. "**

 **"What would you do if it was your dad?"**

 **"That's easy," she said. "I'd leave him to rot. "**

Trina dropped her notebook and looked at Annabeth in shock

Josh stopped reading and picked up his girlfriends notebook and asked her if she was okay. Everybody went silent and tried not to look at Annabeth. Percy had tightened his grip around Annabeth, knowing why she had said what she said. But Trina and Amethyst were both looking at Annabeth with Shock, disbelief, and fear. Annabeth was speechless and tried her best not to look at her daughters in the eye. Finally, Amethyst stood up and was followed by Trina, they both exited the room and headed straight for the bedrooms.

"I'll talk to them" Josh said standing up

(line break)

Josh found Trina and Amy in Trina's room, the two were sitting on the bed, but they weren't talking. He sat beside his girlfriend and kissed her on the cheek and wrapped his arms around her.

"Hey, she probably didn't mean it" he told her

But Trina didn't respond, her mind was too busy thinking.

"He's family" Amethyst said "You don't say that about family" she inched towards Josh and spread out her arms also asking for a hug. He hugged the two girls and waited for one of them to start talking again. Amethyst was as loyal as Percy, especially to her family. She couldn't understand how someone could say that about a family member. What happened to never leaving anybody behind? The eleven-year-old thought to herself and snuggled closer to Josh.

"Maybe he was just mad at him at that time, that's why she said what she said" he told the girls

"What if she gets mad at us too?" Trina gestured to her and Amy "Would she leave us to rot?"

"No. She would never" Josh told her "Your mom loves you. Both of you"

The sisters fell silent.

"We'll never know why she said it unless we continue reading the books, right?" Josh looked at Trina "Why don't we go back to the living room? Please"

"Will you hold my hand as you read?" Trina asked

"Promise" he kissed her forehead and stood up, waiting for the two to stand up as well.

"Let's go Amy" Trina stood up and held Josh's hand

The three went back to the living room and took their seats. Annabeth was about to say something but Josh mouthed the to her the words 'Later'

He took the book again, looked for the right page, then wrapped his arms around his girlfriend who placed her head in his shoulder waiting for him to continue reading.

 **"You're not serious?"**

 **Annabeth's gray eyes fixed on me. She wore the same expression she'd worn in the woods at camp, the moment she drew her sword against the hellhound. "My dads resented me since the day I was born, Percy," she said. "He never wanted a baby. When he got me, he asked Athena to take me back and raise me on Olympus** **because he was too busy with his work. She wasn't happy about** **that. She told him heroes had to be raised by their mortal parent."**

 **"But how . . . I mean, I guess you weren't born in a hospital. . . . "**

 **"I appeared on my fathers doorstep, in a golden cradle, carried down from Olympus** **by Zephyr the West Wind. You'd think my dad would remember that as a miracle, right? Like, maybe he'd take some digital photos or something. But he always talked about** **my arrival as if it were the most inconvenient thing that had ever happened to him. When I was five he got married and totally forgot about** **Athena. He got a regular mortal wife, and had two regular mortal kids, and tried to pretend I didn't exist. "**

Amethyst gasped they never knew that their grandfather and mom had such a rocky relationship before. Just how much have their parents hidden from them?

 **I stared out the train window. The lights of a sleeping town were drifting by. I wanted to make Annabeth feel better, but I didn't know how.**

Right now Percy was also trying to make Annabeth feel better, and was also trying to think of ways on how to get his three girls to talk later.

 **"My mom married a really awful guy," I told her. "Grover said she did it to protect me, to hide me in the scent of a human family. Maybe that's what your dad was thinking. "**

 **Annabeth kept worrying at her necklace. She was pinching the gold college ring that hung with the beads. It occurred to me that the ring must be her fathers. I wondered why she wore it if she hated him so much.**

'That's because she didn't hate him, she was just sad and mad' Piper thought looking over at Annabeth who was still looking down

 **"He doesn't care about** **me," she said. "His wife—my stepmom—treated me like a freak. She wouldn't let me play with her children. My dad went along with her. Whenever something dangerous happened—you know, something with monsters** — **they would both look at me resentfully, like, How dare you put our family at risk. Finally, I took the hint. I wasn't wanted. I ran away. "**

Trina looked over at Annabeth again, they didn't know about that. She looked over at her sister and they had a silent agreement to talk to their mom after this chapter.

 **"How old were you?"**

 **"Same age as when I started camp. Seven. "**

Even the others looked over at Annabeth, even they didn't know that she had started camp that young or that she had ran away.

 **"But . . . you couldn't have gotten all the way to Half-Blood Hill by yourself. "**

 **"Not alone, no. Athena watched over me, guided me toward help. I made a couple of unexpected friends** **who took care of me, for a short time, anyway. "**

Thalia reached over to Annabeth and squeezed her hand letting her know that she was still taking care of her.

 **I wanted to ask what happened, but Annabeth seemed lost in sad memories. So I listened to the sound of Grover snoring and gazed out the train windows as the dark fields of Ohio raced by.**

 **Toward the end of our second day on the train, June 13, eight days before the summer solstice, we passed through some golden hills and over the Mississippi River into St. Louis. Annabeth craned her neck to see the Gateway Arch, which** **looked to me like a huge shopping bag handle stuck on the city.**

 **"I want to do that," she sighed.**

 **"What?" I asked.**

 **"Build something like that. You ever see the Parthenon, Percy?"**

 **"Only in pictures. "**

 **"Someday, I'm going to see it in person. I'm going to build the greatest monument to the gods, ever. Something that'll last a thousand years. "**

Everyone smiled at Annabeth. She did get to built the greatest monument to the gods. She designed Olympus, new cabins at Camp and they were sure that she would design even greater things in the future.

Trina smiled to herself, their mom was always taking them to visit monuments all over the world. She always told them everything she knew about the monument, which was pretty much everything. Amethyst and Percy often get bored by the long lectures Annabeth would give but they would always nod their heads and pretended to listen because it made future Annabeth so happy. Trina always stepped on her dad and Amy's foot when she feels like they were about to doze off.

 **I laughed. "You? An architect?"**

 **I don't know why, but I found it funny. Just the idea of Annabeth trying to sit quietly and draw all day.**

 **Her cheeks flushed. "Yes, an architect. Athena expects her children to create things,**

Trina recalled the conversation she had with her mom when she was younger about creating things. She told her mom that she wanted to create something permanent too. But she didn't want to be an Architect, Trina wanted to be an Author like her grandmother Sally. Trina could still remember how her mom had smiled at her, how proud she looked. Her mom had told her that she could create and achieve anything she wanted. She instantly felt guilty that she was mad at her mom in the first place.

 **not just tear them down, like a certain god of earthquakes I could mention. "**

 **I watched the churning brown water of the Mississippi below.**

 **"Sorry," Annabeth said. "That was mean. "**

Amy smiled at that

 **"Can't we work together a little?" I pleaded. "I mean, didn't Athena and Poseidon ever cooperate?"**

 **Annabeth had to think about** **it. "I guess . . . the chariot," she said tentatively. "My mom invented it, but Poseidon created horses out of the crests of waves. So they had to work together to make it complete. "**

 **"Then we can cooperate, too. Right?"**

 **We rode into the city, Annabeth watching as the Arch disappeared behind a hotel.**

 **"I suppose," she said at last.**

"You did more than cooperate" Rachel said smiling and looked over at the couple

 **We pulled into the Amtrak station downtown. The intercom told us we'd have a three-hour layover before departing for Denver.**

 **Grover stretched. Before he was even fully awake, he said, "Food. "**

"Grover" everyone laughed

 **"Come on, goat boy," Annabeth said. "Sightseeing. "**

 **"Sightseeing?"**

 **"The Gateway Arch," she said. "This may be my only chance to ride to the top. Are you coming or not?"**

 **Grover and I exchanged looks.**

 **I wanted to say no, but I figured that if Annabeth was going, we couldn't very well let her go alone.**

 **Grover shrugged. "As long as there's a snack bar without monsters. "**

"The dam snack bar?" Thalia snickered

"Yep" Grover agreed "The one next to the dam rest room"

"And serving the dam french fries?" Percy added

"What?" Jason asked

"Inside Joke, sorry brother dearest" Thalia waved him off and gestured for Josh to start reading

 **The Arch was about** **a mile from the train station. Late in the day the lines to get in weren't that long. We threaded our way through the underground museum, looking at covered wagons and other junk from the 1800s. It wasn't all that thrilling, but Annabeth kept telling us interesting facts about** **how the Arch was built, and Grover kept passing me jelly beans, so I was okay.**

 **I kept looking around, though, at the other people in line. "You smell anything?" I murmured to Grover.**

 **He took his nose out of the jelly-bean bag long enough to sniff. "Underground," he said distastefully. "Underground air always smells like monsters. Probably doesn't mean anything. "**

Grover shook his head those were one of his mistakes that he deeply regretted. Percy had almost gotten killed, if he had not dismissed the smell of monsters they might have prevented that from happening.

 **But something felt wrong to me. I had a feeling we shouldn't be here.**

 **"Guys," I said. "You know the gods symbols of power?"**

 **Annabeth had been in the middle of reading about** **the construction equipment used to build the Arch, but she looked over. "Yeah?"**

 **"Well, Hade—"**

"You never listen about the 'don't use names because they have power' don't you?" Hazel asked

"Nope"

 **Grover cleared his throat. "Were in a public place. . . . You mean, our friend downstairs?"**

 **"Um, right," I said. "Our friend way downstairs. Doesn't he have a hat like Annabeth's?"**

 **"You mean the Helm of Darkness," Annabeth said. "Yeah, that's his symbol of power. I saw it next to his seat during the winter solstice council meeting. "**

 **"He was there?" I asked.**

 **She nodded. "Its the only time he's allowed to visit Olympus** — **the darkest day of the year. But his helm is a lot more powerful** **than my invisibility hat, if what I've heard is true. . . . "**

 **"It allows him to become darkness," Grover confirmed. "He can melt into shadow or pass through walls. He cant be touched, or seen, or heard.**

"I want something like that!" Leo cried out

"Not a good idea. Trust me" Nico told him

But Leo wasn't convinced he always wondered what it felt like to be able to pass through walls, and to not be seen or heard, Leo could be able to work without any distraction!

 **And he can radiate fear so intense it can drive you insane or stop your heart. Why do you think all rational creatures fear the dark?"**

"Yeah maybe you're right, Nico"

 **"But then . . . how do we know he's not here right now, watching us?" I asked.**

 **Annabeth and Grover exchanged looks.**

 **"We don't," Grover said.**

 **"Thanks, that makes me feel a lot better," I said. "Got any blue jelly beans left?"**

 **I'd almost mastered my jumpy nerves when I saw the tiny little elevator car we were going to ride to the top of the Arch, and I knew I was in trouble. I hate confined places. They make me nuts.**

"Trina's a bit claustrophobic too" Jessy said

"She doesn't seem to have a problem with a confined place such as….. I don't know…. maybe a janitors closet?" Nick smirked looking at Josh and Trina

Trina blushed and threw her notebook at Nick, he managed to avoid it and it hit Jess in the forehead

"HEY!"

"Sorry"

 **We got shoehorned into the car with this big fat lady and her dog, a Chihuahua with a rhinestone collar. I figured maybe the dog was a seeing-eye Chihuahua, because none of the guards said a word about** **it.**

 **We started going up, inside the Arch. I'd never been in an elevator that went in a curve, and my stomach wasn't too happy about** **it.**

"Neither was mine" Grover agreed

 **"No parents?" the fat lady asked us.**

 **She had beady eyes; pointy, coffee-stained teeth; a floppy denim hat, and a denim dress that bulged so much, she looked like a blue-jean blimp.**

 **"They're below," Annabeth told her. "Scared of heights. "**

"Annabeth has better excuses" Will told Percy

 **"Oh, the poor darlings. "**

 **The Chihuahua growled. The woman said, "Now, now, sonny. Behave."**

 **The dog had beady eyes like its owner, intelligent and vicious.**

 **I said, "Sonny. Is that his name?"**

 **"No," the lady told me.**

 **She smiled, as if that cleared everything up.**

"Monsters are always like that" Nico grumbled

 **At the top of the Arch, the observation deck reminded me of a tin can with carpeting. Rows of tiny windows looked out over the city on one side and the river on the other. The view was okay, but if there's anything I like less than a confined space, its a confined space six hundred feet in the air. I was ready to go pretty quick.**

Trina shuddered and snuggled closer to Josh who kissed her on her forehead.

 **Annabeth kept talking about** **structural supports, and how she would've made the windows bigger, and designed a see-through floor. She probably could've stayed up there for hours, but luckily for me the park ranger announced that the observation deck would be closing in a few minutes.**

"I want to go back there, without the quest and monsters and other stuff" Annabeth whispered to Percy who nodded and promised that they would go back there in the future.

 **I steered Grover and Annabeth toward the exit, loaded them into the elevator, and I was about to get in myself when I realized there were already two other tourists inside. No room for me.**

 **The park ranger said, "Next car, sir. "**

 **"We'll get out," Annabeth said. "We'll wait with you. "**

 **But that was going to mess everybody up and take even more time, so I said, "Naw, its okay. I'll see you guys at the bottom. "**

 **Grover and Annabeth both looked nervous, but they let the elevator door slide shut. Their car disappeared down the ramp.**

Annabeth and Grover groaned they should have stayed with Percy

 **Now the only people left on the observation deck were me, a little boy with his parents, the park ranger, and the fat lady with her Chihuahua.**

 **I smiled uneasily at the fat lady. She smiled back, her forked tongue flickering between her teeth.**

"Forked tongue?" Calypso gasped knowing who the monster was. That monster was already alive way before Calypso was exiled into her island.

 **Wait a minute.**

 **Forked tongue?**

 **Before I could decide if I'd really seen that, her Chihuahua jumped down and started yapping at me.**

 **"Now, now, sonny," the lady said. "Does this look like a good time? We have all these nice people here. "**

"At least she didn't want to hurt the mortals" Rachel said

 **"Doggie!" said the little boy. "Look, a doggie!"**

 **His parents pulled him back.**

 **The Chihuahua bared his teeth at me, foam dripping from his black lips.**

 **"Well, son," the fat lady sighed. "If you insist. "**

"I take that back" Rachel grumbled

 **Ice started forming in my stomach. "Urn, did you just call that Chihuahua your son?"**

 **"Chimera, dear," the fat lady corrected. "Not a Chihuahua. Its an easy mistake to make. "**

"Seriously?" Nick asked and Percy shrugged in response

 **She rolled up her denim sleeves, revealing that the skin of her arms was scaly and green. When she smiled, I saw that her teeth were fangs. The pupils of her eyes were sideways slits, like a reptiles.**

 **The Chihuahua barked louder, and with each bark, it grew. First to the size of a Doberman, then to a lion. The bark became a roar.**

 **The little boy screamed. His parents pulled him back toward the exit, straight into the park ranger, who stood, paralyzed, gaping at the monster.**

 **The Chimera was now so tall its back rubbed against the roof. It had the head of a lion with a blood-caked mane, the body and hooves of a giant goat, and a serpent for a tail, a ten-foot-long diamondback growing right out of its shaggy behind. The rhinestone dog collar still hung around its neck, and the plate-sized dog tag was now easy to read: CHIMERA—RABID, FIRE-BREATHING, POISONOUS—IF FOUND, PLEASE CALL TARTARUS—EXT. 954.**

"Tartarus has a landline?!" Will asked Nico

"I don't know anything about that" was his reply

 **I realized I hadn't even uncapped my sword. My hands were numb. I was ten feet away from the Chimeras bloody maw, and I knew that as soon as I moved, the creature would lunge.**

 **The snake lady made a hissing noise that might've been laughter. "Be honored, Percy Jackson. Lord Zeus rarely allows me to test a hero with one of my brood. For I am the Mother of Monsters, the terrible Echidna!"**

"The anteater?" Alex asked

"I don't think so" Jess replied

"She doesn't like being called that" Percy told Alex

 **I stared at her. All I could think to say was: "Isn't that a kind of anteater?"**

"You called her that" Alex told Percy

"and I learned from it. Wont do it again" Percy replied

"Actually I don't ever want to meet her again" he added

 **She howled, her reptilian face turning brown and green with rage. "I hate it when people say that! I hate Australia! Naming that ridiculous animal after me. For that, Percy Jackson, my son shall destroy you!"**

"and that's why I learned"

 **The Chimera charged, its lion teeth gnashing. I managed to leap aside and dodge the bite.**

 **I ended up next to the family and the park ranger, who were all screaming now, trying to pry open the emergency exit doors.**

 **I couldn't let them get hurt. I uncapped my sword, ran to the other side of the deck, and yelled, "Hey, Chihuahua!" The Chimera turned faster than I would've thought possible.**

"and yet you call the Chimera a Chihuahua" Reyna mused

"I was trying to distract it!"

 **Before I could swing my sword, it opened its mouth, emitting a stench like the worlds largest barbecue pit, and shot a column of flame straight at me.**

 **I dove through the explosion. The carpet burst into flames; the heat was so intense, it nearly seared off my eyebrows.**

 **Where I had been standing a moment before was a ragged hole in the side of the Arch, with melted metal steaming around the edges.**

 **Great, I thought. We just blow torched a national monument.**

"That's the first and it probably won't be the last monument" Thalia said

 **Riptide was now a shining bronze blade in my hands, and as the Chimera turned, I slashed at its neck.**

 **That was my fatal mistake. The blade sparked harmlessly off the dog collar. I tried to regain my balance, but I was so worried about defending myself against the fiery lions mouth, I completely forgot about the serpent tail until it whipped around and sank its fangs into my calf.**

"Oh no" Trina muttered

 **My whole leg was on fire. I tried to jab Riptide into the Chimeras mouth, but the serpent tail wrapped around my ankles and pulled me off balance, and my blade flew out of my hand, spinning out of the hole in the Arch and down toward the Mississippi River.**

Annabeth hugged Percy tight, he didn't tell them every detail about the fight, and now she was finding out just how worse it actually was.

 **I managed to get to my feet, but I knew I had lost. I was weaponless. I could feel deadly poison racing up to my chest. I remembered Chiron saying that Anaklusmos would always return to me, but there was no pen in my pocket. Maybe it had fallen too far away. Maybe it only returned when it was in pen form. I didn't know, and I wasn't going to live long enough to figure it out.**

Amethyst frowned "You obviously lived long enough. You'll live long enough to see your grandchildren, and great grandchildren, and great great grandchildren"

"Just how long do you want me to live?" Percy asked smiling

"FOREVER!"

"Great great grandchildren?!" Leo cried out and then smirked and looked at Trina and Josh "You two better hurry up and make children, if Percy has to live long enough to see your children's grandchildren"

"Shut up, Valdez" Percy said

 **I backed into the hole in the wall. The Chimera advanced, growling, smoke curling from its lips. The snake lady, Echidna, cackled. "They don't make heroes like they used to, eh, son?"**

"She acts like we come from a company" Hazel commented

 **The monster growled. It seemed in no hurry to finish me off now that I was beaten.**

 **I glanced at the park ranger and the family. The little boy was hiding behind his fathers legs. I had to protect these people. I couldn't just . . . die. I tried to think, but my whole body was on fire. My head felt dizzy. I had no sword. I was facing a massive, fire-breathing monster and its mother. And I was scared.**

 **There was no place else to go, so I stepped to the edge of the hole. Far, far below, the river glittered.**

 **If I died, would the monsters go away? Would they leave the humans alone?**

"Probably"

 **"If you are the son of Poseidon," Echidna hissed, "you would not fear water. Jump, Percy Jackson. Show me that water will not harm you. Jump and retrieve your sword. Prove your bloodline. "**

 **Yeah, right, I thought. I'd read somewhere that jumping into water from a couple of stories up was like jumping onto solid asphalt. From here, I'd splatter on impact.**

 **The Chimeras mouth glowed red, heating up for another blast.**

 **"You have no faith," Echidna told me. "You do not trust the gods. I cannot blame you, little coward. Better you die now. The gods are faithless. The poison is in your heart. "**

 **She was right: I was dying. I could feel my breath slowing down. Nobody could save me, not even the gods.**

 **I backed up and looked down at the water. I remembered the warm glow of my fathers smile when I was a baby. He must have seen me. He must have visited me when I was in my cradle.**

Percy smiled his father did visit him, his father cared for Percy.

 **I remembered the swirling green trident that had appeared above my head the night of capture the flag, when Poseidon had claimed me as his son.**

 **But this wasn't the sea. This was the Mississippi, dead center of the USA. There was no Sea God here.**

 **"Die, faithless one," Echidna rasped, and the Chimera sent a column of flame toward my face.**

 **"Father, help me," I prayed.**

 **I turned and jumped. My clothes on fire, poison coursing through my veins, I plummeted toward the river.**

"That's the end of the chapter, your turn Amy" Josh said

"Can we talk?" Annabeth asked looking at Amethyst and Trina who nodded their heads

"How about the rest of us take a short break while they talk?" Piper suggested and stood up, the others following her lead.

 **HELLO GUYS! HOW ARE YOU? I HOPE EVERYONE'S DOING GREAT! LEAVE ME YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT THIS CHAPTER IN A REVIEW! THANKS GUYS! SEE YOU NEXT CHAPTER! XOXO, CHINFEV1203**


	20. Fourth Day : Fourth Lunch

**FOURTH DAY : FOURTH LUNCH**

" _How about we take a short break while they talk?" Piper suggested and stood up, the others following her lead._

"Isn't it lunch time already though?" Grover asked on their way out

"Hmm you're right, I guess we're taking lunch now" Piper replied

Josh had stood up as well and kissed Trina's forehead before he made his way to follow the others "I'll be in the dinning room okay?"

"Actually babe, can you stay?" Trina asked

Josh saw one expression in his girlfriends eyes: fear. No she didn't fear Annabeth or the talk that they were going to have. He knew what his girlfriend was afraid of, she was afraid to say something that she was going to regret. The sea never likes to be restrained. Trina is no different, she's moody and impulsive. She would often say something out of impulse that she would regret afterwards. She had confided in him a few years ago, that she was afraid she'd say or do something so impulsive that would create permanent damage.

"Of course" Josh answered her and sat back down and took her hand in his

Once the others all went to the dinning room, all that were left in the room were Annabeth, Percy, Amethyst, Trina, and Josh.

The room was silent for a few minutes.

"About what I said in that chapter earlier" Annabeth started "I didn't mean it, I only said it because I was mad at him at that time" she paused waiting for her two daughters reaction. To be honest, Annabeth was afraid that she had disappointed the two. One of the main reasons why she was mad at her dad because he had disappointed her by not showing that he cared. Annabeth didn't want that to happen to her and her daughters. From what she had learned during their few days of stay here was that her future self had an amazing relation with her daughters. Percy had wanted to defend Annabeth too, but he figured he should let Annabeth do the talking for now.

Amethyst was silent for a while, choosing her words carefully. Amethyst was the less impulsive one, she was calmer, she was the nice sister, and she was too loyal. She didn't like people who were mean, and at that chapter her mom was mean when she what she said.

Trina was the first one to speak "I know. I'm sorry we walked away… it's just we were scared."

"Of what?" Annabeth asked

"That's you'd leave us to rot if we did something to make you mad" Amethyst answered

"I would never" Annabeth said she stood up to sit next to Amethyst

"Family is really important to you right?" Annabeth asked and Amethyst nodded "I'm sorry I said that I would leave him to rot. It's just that I didn't have a great family experience with them when I was a child. When I had said that, I guess I forgot what it felt like to have a family and a home outside of camp. I know my future self would agree with me on this one, that I would never leave him or any of you to rot anywhere. I'm sorry."

Percy knew this was his cue to talk "Annabeth and her dad have an amazing relationship now. I'm guessing that's what you grew up to right?"

The two girls nodded their heads

"I'm sorry I got mad and scared" Amethyst said and went to hug Annabeth

"Trina?" Annabeth asked afraid that she was still mad

"You promise not to leave me anywhere?"

"I promise"

"Not even at the mall or the grocery?"

"Not even there" Annabeth smiled and stretched out her arms for a hug which Trina gladly took

Meanwhile….

As everyone sat down around the dinning table, and helped themselves with the lunch in the middle of the table. Jessy was too busy looking at herself in the mirror and took out a pink hair brush.

"I think I want to have full bangs again" she said to herself she closed her eyes and in a few second she had full bangs in her head.

"That is still so weird" Thalia said who saw Jessy's hair transform

"You'll get used to it" Nick muttered "She does that a lot. It's pretty by the way" Nick had learned early in his friendship with Jess, that he should always compliment his best friend or at least notice when she does something new to her hair or make up or clothes, or else she'll get upset. It's not that she was vain…. okay maybe a little … but she always puts so much effort in the way she looks. It was kind of the way Nick puts so much effort in his music or his archery. Jess gives it back though, she always compliments him with his new music or when he shoots a bulls eye. That was just how supportive she was, that's why he always does the same to her.

"How do I look?" Jessy asked facing everyone and she placed the mirror on the dinning table

"I like it. It really suits you" Piper smiled at her

"You look beautiful" Jason told her

"Aww my stage parents" Jessy said smiling wide "Thanks mommy and daddy"

Even Reyna and Calypso who were sitting near Jessy had complimented her with her hair.

"You really do look like a princess" Leo commented

"Thank you" Jessy smiled seeming to really like all the compliments she was receiving

"I wish my hair was that pretty" Hazel said looking at Jessy's hair in awe

"I can give your hair a makeover later! Oh can I? can I please?" Jessy begged Hazel giving her puppy dog eyes

"How could I say no to that?" Hazel had asked

"YEY! my room later after dinner later!"

"Can I have one too?" Rachel asked "My hairs too frizzy"

"That's because you should be using your hairbrush for brushing your hair instead of throwing it at Titans" Jessy smirked

"You know about that?"

"Of course! I follow your example whenever Josh or Nick annoy me"

Nick grumbled something about annoying best friends and flying hairbrushes.

Jessy continued looking at herself in the mirror and brushing her hair, but Piper saw that she kept sneaking glances at Alex who was too engrossed with a conversation with Nico, Will and Frank to notice that Jessy had a change of hairstyle.

Piper wasn't the only one, Nick noticed it too. He knew how Alex's opinion was important to Jess. So being the supportive best friend that he is he tried to make Alex look in Jessy's direction.

"Hey Alex!" he called "Can you pass me the peanut butter?" He didn't really need the peanut butter but it was the closest thing to Alex. Nick was sitting next to Jess, so naturally Alex would see her as he looked over at Nick.

Alex took a quick look at Jess and stood up taking the peanut butter along with him. He went over to Nick and gave him the jar of peanut butter and stood there looking at Jessy.

"You look beautiful Jess" Alex told her

Jessy momentarily stopped brushing her hair and looked over at Alex, for a few second she was silent.

"Thanks" she whispered but Alex has heard her

Piper seeing the whole exchange as well as the fact that Jessy was blushing couldn't help but tease her a little.

"I love your blush Jess, what product do you use?" she smirked

Nick caught on to what Piper was doing and joined it "I know right? It really suits her. Really red too."

Jessy kicked him in the shin that made him stand up from his chair. While Alex was trying to hide his smile.

"Hey bro" Nick faced Alex "Why don't you sit here" he continued gesturing to his former seat next to Jess "While I go get some bread for this peanut butter" and then he left before Jess could throw her hairbrush or mirror at him

"You really do look beautiful" Alex told Jess as he sat down beside her

This time Jessy tried to control the blush that was slowly creeping on her face 'Stupid Alex and his compliments' she thought to herself

"Of course I am" she retorted "That's what happens when your single and stress free"

"Ouch" Alex faked hurt

Jessy smirked at him and started playing with her hairbrush

"Can we talk later?" he asked her

"We're talking right now"

"Alone?"

"No"

Around this time, Josh, Trina, Annabeth, Percy and Amethyst had walked in the dinning room and took their seats. Josh caught Jessy's eye and raised his eyebrows, gesturing at her sitting next to Alex. Jessy rolled her eyes, but the message was clear. Josh would be talking to her about Alex later.

"Please" Alex said not noticing the exchange between the twins

"Do I look pretty?" she asked facing Alex and looking him in the eye

"The prettiest girl I've ever seen" he smiled at her. She hated that smile, okay she didn't… she loved that smile. It was all he needed to too to reel her back in.

"Get me some food, and I'll think about it. I haven't eaten anything yet" she told him and he smiled at her again before standing up and getting her a plate with food. Alex came back with two plates, one for Jess and one for him.

They were eating and talking, not noticing that everyone were stealing glances at the two. But nobody said a word, Jason was about to say something but Piper glared at him before he could.

"Shouldn't we say something?" Jason whispered to Piper "He broke her heart"

"Jason how would you feel if we broke up and when you were trying to talk to me to apologize someone would interrupt us?"

"I won't like it. But that's different"

"No its not. Stop trying to be a protective father" she scolded him

"Maybe Josh would agree with me" Jason whispered to her and he was about to stand up

"Jason Grace if you stand up I swear I am not kissing you tonight" That made him shut up and sit down

(Line break)

"I don't think your hair's ugly" Frank told Hazel when she said that she was starting to not like the way her hair looked

"But its not pretty either"

"I like it the way it is" Frank smiled at her

"So you think I shouldn't get it done later?"

"You can do whatever you want with your hair, you'll look pretty either way" Frank smiled at her again

"That's so sweet. Thank you Frank"

While Nick and Will had engaged in a conversation about Vaccines, Will suddenly faced Nico

"I don't think you have complete Vaccines, Nico" Will started

"No needles!" he said and scooted away from Will

"Are you okay, Nico?" Hazel asked seeing her brothers horrified expression

"Maybe you too Hazel" Will told her

"What?"

"I don't think you and Nico have complete Vaccines, I think I have some in my medical kit in my room, maybe we could inject it to the two of you later"

"Okay" Hazel replied

"No!" Nico argued

"Hazel's going to do it" Will argued back

"I won't!"

"We'll talk about this more later" Will told him

"What are vaccines?" Calypso asked

Will told her everything she needed to know, as well as convincing Calypso that she should get complete vaccines as well. After Calypso had agreed, Will looked at Nico like 'they're doing it why can't you?'

"Still a no" Nico told him

Will was going to need Piper's help in convincing Nico, and maybe Frank, Reyna and Jason's help in holding Nico down to a chair while he gets his vaccines.

Meanwhile the others were eating and talking with those next to them. Thalia had approached Annabeth when she had sat down and asked her if everything was okay with her and her daughters. Annabeth smiled at her daughters and told Thalia that everything was okay.

Soon enough they were finished with Lunch and went back to the living room. Alex smiled at Jess before taking his seat, Jess rolled her eyes at him and took her seat as well. They talked and had a conversation earlier, but they didn't talk about their relationship, that was a talk reserved for later. Jessy looked over an her brother was already looking at her with his eyebrows raised. 'Later' she told him. He nodded his head then whispered something in Trina's ear.

"He kept looking at you and Alex talking earlier" Nick whispered to Jess

"Did he say anything?"

"No"

'Great' Jess thought. When Josh and her dad are silent about something that usually means Jess is in big trouble. Usually, not always. She suddenly remembered when she had sneaked out after curfew for the first time, her dad had grounded her and given her the silent treatment for a day. Then she remembered when she had gotten Josh in trouble, they were both grounded. Josh couldn't talk or see Trina for the whole weekend, Josh had given Jess the same silent treatment for a few hours. Jessy could probably spend an hour recalling other events but Amethyst had already started reading and had gotten Jess out of her thoughts.

 **HELLO EVERYONE! LEAVE ME YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT THIS CHAPTER IN A REVIEW :) SEE YOU NEXT CHAPTER! THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO HAD REVIEWED LAST TIME.**

 **XOXO, CHINFEV1203**


	21. Chapter 14: Amethyst

**14\. I BECOME A KNOWN FUGITIVE** Amethyst read then placed the book at her lap and looked at Percy

"You become what?" she asked him

"Just read"

 **I'd love to tell you I had some deep revelation on my way down, that I came to terms with my own mortality, laughed in the face of death, et cetera.**

 **The truth? My only thought was: Aaaaggghhhhh!**

"Nice thought" Leo smirked remembering the many times he had almost died and those were his exact thoughts as well.

 **The river raced toward me at the speed of a truck. Wind ripped the breath from my lungs. Steeples and skyscrapers and bridges tumbled in and out of my vision.**

 **And then: Flaaa-boooom!**

Most of the demigods in the room winced

 **A whiteout of bubbles. I sank through the murk, sure that I was about to end up embedded in a hundred feet of mud and lost forever.**

"You are so pessimistic. You're the opposite of Amy" Jessy said

"That's true" Trina agreed "Amy always looks at the brighter side of things, don't you amy?"

The said girl smiled and nodded

 **But my impact with the water hadn't hurt.**

"Of course it won't! You're a son of Poseidon!" Calypso exclaimed

 **I was falling slowly now, bubbles trickling up through my fingers. I settled on the river bottom soundlessly. A catfish the size of my stepfather lurched away into the gloom. Clouds of silt and disgusting garbage—beer bottles, old shoes, plastic bags—swirled up all around me.**

Grover frowned the mortals didn't just pollute the wild, but the bodies of water as well. Grover hated it so much. Sometimes he wished he could get rid of all the pollution with just a snap of his fingers, but sadly he couldn't do it.

 **At that point, I realized a few things: first, I had not been flattened into a pancake. I had not been barbecued. I couldn't even feel the Chimera poison boiling in my veins anymore. I was alive, which was good.**

"Really good" Hazel muttered under her breath

 **Second realization: I wasn't wet. I mean, I could feel the coolness of the water. I could see where the fire on my clothes had been quenched. But when I touched my own shirt, it felt perfectly dry.**

"What happens when you take a bath?" Leo asked and Percy glared at him

"It only works with bodies of water, and if I don't want to get wet" he said

 **I looked at the garbage floating by and snatched an old cigarette lighter.**

 **No way, I thought.**

 **I flicked the lighter. It sparked. A tiny flame appeared, right there at the bottom of the Mississippi.**

"HEY PERCY! Do you think I could set a fire underwater if you were holding me?"

"I don't really know Leo" Percy said

"Let's try it!"

"Sure. But not right now" Percy shrugged now that Leo had mentioned it he was actually curious if it would actually work

"Boys" Thalia muttered

 **I grabbed a soggy hamburger wrapper out of the current and immediately the paper turned dry. I lit it with no problem. As soon as I let it go, the flames sputtered out. The wrapper turned back into a slimy rag. Weird.**

"I really think it would work!" Leo exclaimed

"Yes Leo. Now shut up" Piper scolded him but he continued talking

"Just promise me you won't let go of me so I won't drown" he told Percy

"Then don't annoy me so I won't" Percy grumbled rolling his eyes

He really would never let Leo drown, he just said that to get Leo to drop the subject for now.

 **But the strangest thought occurred to me only last: I was breathing. I was underwater, and I was breathing normally.**

"and why you thought of that last is really a big question" Annabeth mused

"I was too focused on not being flattened to death!" Percy exclaimed defending himself from all the looks that he was getting from everybody

Amethyst was about to read again but got interrupted by Will

"Wait a second! I just remembered something" Will exclaimed then looked at Trina and Amethyst

"How were you two born?"

"What do you mean?" Trina asked

"Annabeth was born from Athena's mind, so how were you two?" Will trailed off which caused Trina to face palm

"I thought you were the doctor" Trina muttered

"I haven't encountered a daughter of Athena giving birth yet!" Will said

"I'm curious too. How were you two born?" Thalia asked and almost everyone nodded in approval, they were curious as well too. Even Percy wanted to find out the answer to Will's question

"So?" Will asked

"We were born the normal way. In the hospital"

"But Athena's children are conceived through her mind. How were you two?" Rachel asked trailing off

Trina turned a little pale "How are babies usually made and born? That's how we were made and born. The normal way!" she grumbled

"How are babies born?" Amethyst asked

"Well when…" Will was about to explain when he saw that both Percy and Annabeth were glaring at him

"You know what kiddo, just read" Will said then hid behind Nico

"But I'm curious!"

"Maybe later. You should read first" Piper charmspeaked Amethyst and she went back to reading the book immediately

 **I stood up, thigh-deep in mud. My legs felt shaky. My hands trembled. I should've been dead. The fact that I wasn't seemed like . . . well, a miracle.**

"Not a miracle. Just your bloodline" Reyna told him

 **I imagined a woman's voice, a voice that sounded a bit like my mother: Percy, what do you say?**

"Grandma?" Amethyst asked but Percy shook his head. The woman wasn't his mother.

 **"Um . . . thanks. " Underwater, I sounded like I did on recordings, like a much older kid. "Thank you . . . Father. "**

 **No response. Just the dark drift of garbage downriver, the enormous catfish gliding by, the flash of sunset on the waters surface far above, turning everything the color of butterscotch.**

 **Why had Poseidon saved me?**

"Because you're his son? Duh" Amethyst said like it should be obvious to Percy

 **The more I thought about it, the more ashamed I felt. So I'd gotten lucky a few times before. Against a thing like the Chimera, I had never stood a chance. Those poor people in the Arch were probably toast. I couldn't protect them. I was no hero. Maybe I should just stay down here with the catfish, join the bottom feeders.**

"You're a hero. My hero" Trina told him and Amethyst nodded

Percy smiled at them and opened up his arms for a hug

"Nah too cheesy" Trina said but hugged him anyway

 **Fump-fump-fump. A riverboats paddlewheel churned above me, swirling the silt around.**

 **There, not five feet in front of me, was my sword, its gleaming bronze hilt sticking up in the mud.**

 **I heard that woman's voice again: Percy, take the sword. Your father believes in you. This time, I knew the voice wasn't in my head. I wasn't imagining it. Her words seemed to come from everywhere, rippling through the water like dolphin sonar.**

"and yet another sea reference" Annabeth said

"And just to add it up his in a river while his making the sea reference" Rachel added

 **"Where are you?" I called aloud.**

 **Then, through the gloom, I saw her—a woman the color of the water, a ghost in the current, floating just above the sword. She had long billowing hair, and her eyes, barely visible, were green like mine.**

 **A lump formed in my throat. I said, "Mom?"**

"Nope" Percy answered

 **No, child, only a messenger, though your mothers fate is not as hopeless as you believe. Go to the beach in Santa Monica.**

 **"What?"**

 **It is your fathers will. Before you descend into the Underworld, you must go to Santa Monica. Please, Percy, I cannot stay long. The river here is too foul for my presence.**

"Because humans have polluted it!" Grover cried out and then grumbled to himself about how humans just throw their garbage everywhere without even thinking of its effect to the Wild or the bodies of Water or those that live in it.

 **"But . . . " I was sure this woman was my mother, or a vision of her, anyway. "Who—how did you—"**

 **There was so much I wanted to ask, the words jammed up in my throat.**

 **I cannot stay, brave one, the woman said. She reached out, and I felt the current brush my face like a caress. You must go to Santa Monica! And, Percy, do not trust the gifts. . . .**

"What gifts? Aren't gifts supposed to be good?" Frank asked

"It depends on whose giving them" Percy answered him then frowned remembering how those gifts had tricked him

 **Her voice faded.**

 **"Gifts?" I asked. "What gifts? Wait!"**

 **She made one more attempt to speak, but the sound was gone. Her image melted away. If it was my mother, I had lost her again.**

Everyone looked at Percy sadly, those who had already lost their mortal mothers knew exactly how Percy felt like. Even Thalia who didn't get along with her mom felt so much pain, it was hard to lose a parent.

 **I felt like drowning myself. The only problem: I was immune to drowning.**

 **Your** **father** **believes in you, she had said.**

Percy smiled, when he was that age he couldn't really believe how his father could believe in him. Especially since he hasn't really met him yet, but right now he knew that his father did believe in him. Percy was glad he knew that know, he also knew that his father was proud of him. Even though, Percy doesn't get to spend time with his Father, knowing that he believes and is proud of Percy is enough.

 **She'd also called me brave . . . unless she was talking to the catfish.**

"You know what? I think maybe she was talking to the catfish" Leo teased

 **I waded toward Riptide and grabbed it by the hilt. The Chimera might still be up there with its snaky, fat mother, waiting to finish me off. At the very** **least** **, the mortal police would be arriving, trying to figure out who had blown a hole in the Arch. If they found me, they'd have some** **quest** **ions.**

"Lots and lots of questions" Piper muttered

 **I capped my sword, stuck the ballpoint pen in my pocket. "Thank you,** **Father** **," I said** **again** **to the dark water.**

 **Then I** **kicked** **up through the muck and swam for the surface.**

 **I came ashore next to a floating McDonalds.**

"I miss McDonalds!" Jessy cried out "I want a happy meal"

"Aren't you too old for a happy meal?" Frank asked and Jessy and Trina gasped

"No one's to old for a happy meal!" Jessy and Trina exclaimed, while Josh rolled his eyes at the two

"Uncle Nico always gets us a happy meal" Jessy said

"I do?" Nico asked and the two girls nodded and smiled at him

 **A block away, every emergency vehicle in St. Louis was surrounding the Arch. Police helicopters circled overhead. The crowd of onlookers reminded me of Times Square on New Years Eve.**

"So I'm guessing there were a lot of them" Rachel said

"You bet"

 **A little girl said, "Mama! That boy walked out of the river. "**

"Oh no" Hazel muttered under her breath

 **"That's nice, dear," her mother said, craning her neck to watch the ambulances.**

"Mortals" Grover grumbled

"HEY!" Rachel cried

 **"But he's dry!"**

 **"That's nice, dear. "**

 **A news lady was talking for the camera: "Probably not a terrorist attack, were told, but its still very early in the investigation. The damage, as you can see, is very serious. We're trying to get to some of the survivors, to** **quest** **ion them** **about** **eye witness reports of someone falling from the Arch. "**

"and that's Percy" Frank said

"Maybe they'll see you as a victim this time" Jason said

"Nope. Not with my luck" Percy said

 **Survivors. I felt a surge of relief. Maybe the park ranger and that family made it out safely. I hoped Annabeth and Grover were okay.**

 **I tried to push through the crowd to see what was going on inside the police line.**

 **". . . an adolescent boy," another reporter was saying. "Channel Five has learned that surveillance cameras show an adolescent boy going wild on the observation deck, somehow setting off this freak explosion. Hard to believe, John, but that's what were hearing.** **Again** **, no confirmed fatalities . . . "**

"See? Even though I was the victim, it's my fault yet again" Percy grumbled to himself but everyone heard and laughed

"It will always be your fault dad" Amethyst told him

 **I backed away, trying to keep my head down. I had to go a long way around the police perimeter. Uniformed officers and news reporters were everywhere.**

 **I'd almost lost hope of ever finding Annabeth and Grover when a familiar voice bleated, "Perrr-cy!"**

"Can you actually bleat it right now?" Rachel said "I want to hear it!"

"No"

"Come on!"

"No!"

 **I turned and got tackled by Grover's bear hug—or goat hug.**

"Definitely a goat hug" Leo said "Or a satyr hug. Hmmm I wonder if I could get away with calling Coach Hedge that"

"One you won't, Two you could never hug him" Piper said bursting Leo's bubble

 **He said, "We thought you'd gone to Hades the hard way!"**

"Actually it's supposed to be the easy way" Nico said and everyone looked at him

"What? It is! It's harder to go there through Charon!"

 **Annabeth stood behind him, trying to look angry, but even she seemed relieved to see me. "We can't leave you alone for five minutes! What happened?"**

"Of course I was relieved Seaweed Brain! I thought you were dead!"

Percy smiled and gave her a kiss

 **"I sort of fell. "**

"Yeah. Sort of" Calypso snorted

 **"** **Percy** **! Six hundred and thirty feet?"**

"Of course she would know that" Jason said

 **Behind us, a cop shouted, "Gangway!" The crowd parted, and a couple of paramedics hustled out, rolling a woman on a stretcher. I recognized her immediately as the mother of the little boy who'd been on the observation deck.**

"At least they're safe" Jessy sighed

 **She was saying, "And then this huge dog, this huge fire-breathing Chihuahua—"**

"So that's what they saw!" Nick exclaimed

 **"Okay, ma'am," the paramedic said. "Just calm down. Your family is fine. The medication is starting to kick in. "**

 **"I'm not crazy! This boy jumped out of the hole and the monster disappeared. " Then she saw me. "There he is! That's the boy!"**

"Percy was right. The monster did leave them alone" Hazel said

"I can be right sometimes you know" Percy told her frowning

 **I turned quickly and pulled Annabeth and Grover after me. We disappeared into the crowd.**

 **"What's going on?" Annabeth demanded. "Was she talking** **about** **the Chihuahua on the elevator?"**

"Yep"

 **I told them the whole story of the Chimera, Echidna, my high-dive act, and the underwater lady's message.**

 **"Whoa," said Grover. "We've got to get you to Santa Monica! You can't ignore a summons from your dad. "**

"Or from any other god" Reyna told him

 **Before Annabeth could respond, we passed another reporter doing a news break, and I almost froze in my tracks when he said, "** **Percy** **Jackson** **. That's right, Dan. Channel Twelve has learned that the boy who may have caused this explosion fits the description of a** **young** **man wanted by authorities for a serious New Jersey bus accident three days ago. And the boy is believed to be traveling west. For our viewers at home, here is a photo of** **Percy** **Jackson** **. "**

"Wow dad. First the newspaper, now television! Your famous!" Trina said sarcastically

"One of my many talents" Percy told her smiling

 **We ducked around the news van and slipped into an alley.**

 **"First things first," I told Grover. "We've got to get out of town!"**

"Duh"

 **Somehow, we made it back to the Amtrak station without getting spotted. We got on board the train just before it pulled out for Denver. The train trundled west as darkness fell, police lights still pulsing** **again** **st the St. Louis skyline behind us.**

"That's good. At least the police didn't see and catch you" Piper said

 **15\. A GOD BUYS US CHEESEBURGERS**

"Oh wait! That's the next chapter. I'm done! Who's reading next?" Amethyst said and waved the book in the air

 **HELLO GUYS! HOW ARE YOU ALL DOING? HOPE EVERYONE IS DOING FINE :)**

 **AND I HOPE YOU LIKE THIS CHAPTER AND DON'T FORGET TO TELL ME YOUR THOUGHTS ABOUT IT IN A REVIEW. BTW THANKS TO THOSE WHO HAD REVIEWED ON MY LAST CHAPTER. SEE YOU NEXT CHAPTER! :)**

 **XOXO, CHINFEV1203**


	22. Chapter 15: Reyna

"It's my turn" Reyna said and got the book from Amethyst

 **15\. A GOD BUYS US CHEESEBURGERS** Reyna read

"AWESOME!" Thalia cried "Why can't a god buy me cheeseburgers too?!"

 **The next afternoon, June 14, seven days before the solstice, our train rolled into Denver. We hadn't eaten since the night before in the dining car, somewhere in Kansas. We hadn't taken a shower since Half-Blood Hill, and I was sure that was obvious.**

Jessy wrinkled her nose that was one of the things that she hated when they went on a quest, you wouldn't get to have a shower or even brush your teeth for days.

 **"Lets try to contact Chiron," Annabeth said. "I want to tell him** **about** **your talk with the river spirit. "**

 **"We cant use phones, right?"**

 **"I'm not talking** **about** **phones. "**

"It's because you never explained to him everything" Hazel said

 **We wandered through downtown for** **about** **half an hour, though I wasn't sure what Annabeth was looking for. The air was dry and hot,** **which** **felt weird after the humidity of St. Louis. Everywhere we turned, the Rocky** **Mount** **ain's seemed to be staring at me, like a tidal wave** **about** **to crash into the city.**

"You really do compare everything to the sea" Calypso said

"He sure does" Trina grumbled "He wanted to name me Ariel"

"Seriously?!" Annabeth cried and glared at Percy

"Wait… how'd you get your name then?" Percy asked

Trina sighed "You had just watched The Little Mermaid when you and mom were thinking of baby names. Then you suggested to name me Ariel. Mom didn't like it, so you settled in naming me after Ariel's sisters"

"That's where Alana came from?" Percy asked referring to Trina's middle name

Trina nodded "You suggested on Andrina Alana. Those two names were the names of two of Ariel's sisters. Mom thought it would be redundant to name me after two mermaids. So you tried to convince her to shorten Andrina to Drina. Then mom came out of the perfect solution to replace the D with T. So its Trina Alana." she finished then looked at Percy

Annabeth was looking at Percy

"Its a good name!" he cried

"Mermaids?"

"They're part of the sea!"

"Whatever, Seaweed brain"

"Who chose your name?" Piper asked Amethyst

"Trina did" Amy answered

"Oh thank the gods!" Annabeth exclaimed

"Percy really is obsessed with the sea" Leo said

"Bro, I'm part of the sea! Of course I'll compare everything to it"

"Can I read now?" Reyna grumbled

"Yes Ma'am" everyone chorused and Reyna continued to read

 **Finally we found an empty do-it-yourself car wash. We veered toward the stall farthest from the street, keeping our eyes open for patrol cars. We were three adolescents hanging out at a car wash without a car; any cop worth his doughnuts would figure we were up to no good.**

"Or you know maybe the mist would help you out" Frank said

"I don't think it works that way, unless you manipulate it" Thalia said

 **"What exactly are we doing?" I asked, as Grover took out the spray gun.**

"Can someone just please explain everything to him already!" Hazel exclaimed she was feeling sorry for the twelve year old Percy. Its already bad enough that he lost his mom, then found out he's being blamed for something he didn't do, going to a quest with barely enough training, and he doesn't even have a clue of everything going on around him.

 **"Its seventy-five cents," he grumbled. "I've only got two quarters left. Annabeth?"**

 **"Don't look at me," she said. "The dining car wiped me out. "**

"So you shouldn't be there right now? Since you know…. your wiped out?" Leo laughed

"Not even funny Leo" Piper said and hit him in the back of his head

"OW!"

 **I fished out**

"There it is again! A sea reference!" Nick looked at Percy who shrugged

 **my last bit of change and passed Grover a quarter,** **which** **left me two nickels and one drachma from Medusas place.**

 **"Excellent," Grover said. "We could do it with a spray bottle, of course, but the connection isn't as good, and my arm gets tired of pumping. "**

 **"What are you talking** **about** **?"**

Hazel frowned

 **He fed in the quarters and set the knob to FINE MIST. "I-Ming. "**

 **"Instant messaging?"**

"Nope" Thalia said

 **"Iris-messaging," Annabeth corrected. "The rainbow goddess Iris carries messages for the gods. If you know how to ask, and she's not too busy, she'll do the same for half-bloods. "**

"Or fleecy could do it" Hazel smiled and Frank and Percy nodded in agreement

 **"You summon the goddess with a spray gun?"**

"It is weird when you say it like that" Nico said

"You summon ghost with a happy meal!"Grover exclaimed

Nico frowned but didn't say anything

 **Grover pointed the nozzle in the air and water hissed out in a thick white mist. "Unless you know an easier way to make a rainbow. "**

"Well you can… or you can do…." Leo trailed off and thought about it for a moment

"You know what, I've got nothing" he said defeated

 **Sure enough, late afternoon light filtered through the vapor and broke into colors.**

 **Annabeth held her palm out to me. "Drachma, please. "**

 **I handed it over.**

 **She raised the coin over her head. "O goddess, accept our offering."**

 **She threw the drachma into the rainbow. It disappeared in a golden shimmer.**

 **"Half-Blood Hill," Annabeth requested.**

"Why didn't you say Chiron's name as well?" Rachel asked and Annabeth shrugged

 **For a moment, nothing happened.**

 **Then I was looking through the mist at strawberry fields, and the Long Island Sound in the distance. We seemed to be on the porch of the Big House. Standing with his back to us at the railing was a sandy-haired guy in shorts and an orange tank top. He was holding a bronze sword and seemed to be staring intently at something down in the meadow.**

"Luke" Thalia muttered under her breath

 **"Luke!" I called.**

 **He turned, eyes wide. I could swear he was standing three feet in front of me through a screen of mist, except I could only see the part of him that appeared in the rainbow.**

 **"** **Percy** **!" His scarred face broke into a grin. "Is that Annabeth, too? Thank the gods! Are you guys okay?"**

 **"Were . . . uh . . . fine," Annabeth stammered. She was madly** **straight** **ening her dirty T-shirt, trying to comb the loose hair out of her face. "We thought—Chiron—I mean—"**

"Annabeth's got a crush" Will sing songed

"Shut up, Solace"

 **"He's down at the cabins. " Luke's smile faded. "We're having some issues with the campers. Listen, is everything cool with you? Is Grover all right?"**

Grover nodded seemingly forgetting for a moment that they were reading a book

 **"I'm right here," Grover called. He held the nozzle out to one side and stepped into Luke's line of vision. "What kind of issues?"**

 **Just then a big Lincoln Continental pulled into the car wash with its stereo turned to maximum hip-hop. As the car slid into the next stall, the bass from the subwoofers vibrated so much, it shook the pavement.**

 **"Chiron had to—whats that noise?" Luke yelled.**

The Apollo kids frowned

"Its not noise. Its music" Nick told them

"Well it was a really loud music" Grover said

 **"I'll take care of it. " Annabeth yelled back, looking very relieved to have an excuse to get out of sight. "Grover, come on!**

Some of the demigods in the room snickered at Annabeth then stopped suddenly when Annabeth had glared at them.

 **"What?" Grover said. "But—"**

 **"Give** **Percy** **the nozzle and come on!" she ordered.**

 **Grover muttered something** **about** **girls being harder to understand**

Almost all the boys nodded their heads while the girls glared at them

 **than the** **Oracle** **at Delphi,**

"Isn't the oracle a girl too?" Frank asked while Leo said

"So Rachel is easier to understand?"

"Most of the time yeah"Percy said then seemed to realize what he said then looked at Annabeth with wide eyes

"Oops" he whispered mostly to himself then he started rumbling words like "I didn't mean…. Its not like…. You know that I was….Its not what I meant!"

"Whatever Seaweed Brain" Annabeth kissed his cheek and Reyna continued reading

 **then he handed me the spray gun and followed Annabeth.**

"You guys will grumble about it for a while but you'll follow girls anyway" Piper said

 **I readjusted the hose so I could keep the rainbow going and still see Luke.**

 **"Chiron had to break up a fight," Luke shouted to me over the music. "Things are pretty tense here,** **Percy** **. Word leaked out** **about** **the Zeus—Poseidon standoff. Were still not sure how—probably the same scumbag who summoned the hellhound.**

"Wait a sec!" Thalia cried out "Did I just hear that right? Can you read that again Reyna?"

Reyna read it again and Thalia laughed

"HUH! He just called himself a scumbag!"

"You're right!" Rachel agreed and laughed as well even Nico smiled a little

After the laughing ha d subsided Reyna took it as her cue to continue reading

 **Now the campers are starting to take sides. Its shaping up like the Trojan War all over** **again** **. Aphrodite, Ares, and Apollo are backing Poseidon, more or less. Athena is backing Zeus. "**

"Exactly what _he_ wanted" Percy grumbled to himself

 **I shuddered to think that Clarisse's cabin would ever be on my dads side for anything. In the next stall, I heard Annabeth and some guy arguing with each other, then the musics volume decreased drastically.**

"What did you do?" Reyna asked Annabeth but she just smiled and didn't respond

 **"So whats your status?" Luke asked me. "Chiron will be sorry he missed you. "**

"and Luke will be happy that Chiron missed them" Will grumbled

 **I told him pretty much everything, including my dreams. It felt so good to see him, to feel like I was back at camp even for a few minutes, that I didn't realize how long I had talked until the beeper went off on the spray machine, and I realized I only had one more minute before the water shut off.**

Percy sighed if only he had known. He wouldn't have told Luke everything at that time.

 **"I wish I could be there," Luke told me. "We cant help much from here, I'm afraid, but listen . . . it had to be Hades who took the** **master** **bolt. He was there at** **Olympus** **at the winter solstice. I was chaperoning a field trip and we saw him. "**

"It's always Hades!" Nico grumbled "It could have been Luke too! Like he said, He was there!"

Nico kept grumbling while Will tried to calm him down.

 **"But Chiron said the gods can't take each others magic items directly. "**

 **"That's true," Luke said, looking troubled. "Still . . . Hades has the helm of darkness. How could anybody else sneak into the throne room and steal the** **master** **bolt? You'd have to be invisible. "**

"HEY!" Annabeth, Trina and Amethyst yelled

 **We were both silent, until Luke seemed to realize what he'd said.**

 **"Oh, hey," he protested. "I didn't mean Annabeth. She and I have known each other forever. She would never . . . I mean, she's like a little sister to me. "**

"I don't think Annabeth would have liked hearing that at that time" Piper smirked at her friend

"Shut up, Mclean"

"How many times do we tell each other to shut up?" Hazel asked

"A lot" Jason answered her

 **I wondered if Annabeth would like that description.**

"No she would not" Percy smirked

"I do now" Annabeth told him and gave him a kiss

 **In the stall next to us, the music stopped completely. A man screamed in terror, car doors slammed, and the Lincoln peeled out of the car wash.**

"Seriously what did you do?!" Jessy exclaimed

"It's our secret" Grover said

 **"You'd better go see what that was," Luke said. "Listen, are you wearing the flying shoes? I'll feel better if I know they've done you some good. "**

"Feel better!?" Grover grumbled

"Done you some good?!" he grumbled again and frowned

 **"Oh . . . uh, yeah!" I tried not to sound like a guilty liar. "Yeah, they've come in handy. "**

"Yeah really handy" Grover grumbled again

"They were at first" Percy offered in an attempt to calm down his Satyr friend

 **"Really?" He grinned. "They fit and everything?"**

 **The water shut off. The mist started to evaporate.**

 **"Well, take care of yourself out there in Denver," Luke called, his voice getting fainter. "And tell Grover it'll be better this time! Nobody will get turned into a pine tree if he just—"**

"SERIOUSLY!?" Grover and Thalia growled at the same time. Luke had just had to say that didn't he?!

 **But the mist was gone, and Luke's image faded to nothing. I was alone in a wet, empty car wash stall.**

"You make it sound so lonely" Trina said

 **Annabeth and Grover came around the corner, laughing, but stopped when they saw my face. Annabeth's smile faded. "What happened,** **Percy** **? What did Luke say?"**

 **"Not much," I lied, my stomach feeling as empty as a Big Three cabin. "Come on, lets find some dinner. "**

"Fooooood" Grover smiled to himself

While the others were thinking how much of an appetite can a Satyr actually have?

 **A few minutes later, we were sitting at a booth in a gleaming chrome diner. All around us, families were eating burgers and drinking malts and sodas.**

 **Finally the waitress came over. She raised her eyebrow skeptically. "Well?"**

 **I said, "We, um, want to order dinner. "**

 **"You kids have money to pay for it?"**

"That sounds mean" Amy said while frowning

 **Grover's lower lip quivered. I was afraid he would start bleating, or** **worse** **, start eating the linoleum. Annabeth looked ready to pass out from hunger.**

"I did not!"

 **I was trying to think up a sob story for the waitress when a rumble shook the whole building; a motorcycle the size of a baby elephant had pulled up to the curb.**

"Who would have a motorcycle that big?" Frank asked but no one answered

 **All conversation in the diner stopped. The motorcycles headlight glared red. Its gas tank had flames painted on it, and a shotgun holster riveted to either side, complete with shotguns. The seat was leather—but leather that looked like . . . well, Caucasian human skin.**

A few shivered in the description

 **The guy on the bike would've made pro wrestlers run for Mama. He was dressed in a red muscle shirt and black jeans and a black leather duster, with a hunting knife strapped to his thigh. He wore red wraparound shades, and he had the cruelest, most brutal face I'd ever seen— handsome, I guess, but wicked—with an oily black crew cut and cheeks that were scarred from many, many fights. The weird thing was, I felt like I'd seen his face somewhere before.**

Frank gulped he knew who the guy on the bike was. He somehow felt that his father's appearance of this chapter would not end well.

 **As he walked into the diner, a hot, dry wind blew through the place. All the people rose, as if they were hypnotized, but the biker waved his hand dismissively and they all sat down** **again** **. Everybody went back to their conversations. The waitress blinked, as if somebody had just pressed the rewind button on her brain. She asked us** **again** **, "You kids have money to pay for it?"**

"Creepyyyyy" Leo trailed off

 **The biker said, "Its on me. " He slid into our booth,** **which** **was way too small for him, and crowded Annabeth** **again** **st the window.**

"That was annoying by the way" Annabeth grumbled remembering being squished in the window

 **He looked up at the waitress, who was gaping at him, and said, "Are you still here?"**

 **He pointed at her, and she stiffened. She turned as if she'd been spun around, then marched back toward the kitchen.**

"That wasn't nice of him" Amethyst said

 **The biker looked at me. I couldn't see his eyes behind the red shades, but bad feelings started boiling in my stomach. Anger, resentment, bitterness. I wanted to hit a wall. I wanted to pick a fight with somebody. Who did this guy think he was?**

"Mars" Reyna muttered

 **He gave me a wicked grin. "So you're old Seaweeds kid, huh?"**

"Everyone just loves giving each other nicknames huh?' Rachel said

 **I should've been surprised, or scared, but instead I felt like I was looking at my stepdad, Gabe. I wanted to rip this guys head off.**

"Its his power. He wants you to feel all those anger" Annabeth told him

 **"What's it to you?"**

 **Annabeth's eyes flashed me a warning. "** **Percy** **, this is—"**

 **The biker raised his hand.**

 **"Sokay," he said. "I don't mind a little attitude. Long as you remember who's the boss. You know who I am, little cousin?"**

"I really don't like remembering that I am somehow related to that guy" Percy grumbled

 **Then it struck me why this guy looked familiar. He had the same vicious sneer as some of the kids at Camp Half-Blood, the ones from cabin five.**

"ARES" The demigods who had not guessed earlier who it was cried out

 **"You're Clarisse's dad," I said. "Ares, god of war. "**

"Franks dad too" Leo said

 **Ares grinned and took off his shades. Where his eyes should've been, there was only fire, empty sockets glowing with miniature nuclear explosions. "That's right, punk. I heard you broke Clarisse's spear. "**

"It was their fault, they started it" Piper said

 **"She was asking for it. "**

 **"Probably. That's cool. I don't fight my kids fights, you know? What I'm here for—I heard you were in town. I got a little proposition for you. "**

"What kind of proposition?" Frank asked

"Wait for it" Percy told him

Frank didn't know why but he had a bad idea about his father's appearance in the chapter

 **The waitress came back with heaping trays of food—cheeseburgers, fries, onion rings, and chocolate shakes.**

Some people in the room sighed dreamily and thought about food

"We're having dinner after this, right?" Grover asked

"Yes, Grover" Annabeth replied Seriously how much can this guy eat? Annabeth thought to herself

 **Ares handed her a few gold drachmas.**

"Would the mist make it look like mortal money?" Hazel asked

"Nope" Percy replied

 **She looked nervously at the coins. "But, these aren't. . . "**

 **Ares pulled out his huge knife and started cleaning his fingernails. "Problem, sweetheart?"**

 **The waitress swallowed, then left with the gold.**

"That is really really mean" Amethyst said frowning

"That's Ares for you" Percy told her

 **"You can't do that," I told Ares. "You can't just threaten people with a knife. "**

"Or you don't threaten people at all!" Amethyst cried out

"You're too good for this world, baby doll" Jessy told her

 **Ares laughed. "Are you kidding? I love this country. Best place since Sparta. Don't you carry a weapon, punk? You should. Dangerous world out there.** **Which** **bring** **s me to my proposition. I need you to do me a favor. "**

"Almost all of them needs a favor done" Percy grumbled and a lot of the people in the room agreed

 **"What favor could I do for a god?"**

"A lot" Leo muttered

 **"Something a god doesn't have time to do himself.**

"Or something they don't want to do at all" Piper said and Percy nodded in agreement

 **Its nothing much. I left my shield at an** **abandoned** **water park here in town. I was going on a little . . . date with my girlfriend.**

"Is he talking about my mom?" Piper asked

"He is" Annabeth answered

"I just realized something" Leo said

"What?"

"Piper and Frank are practically step siblings!"

"Let's just keep reading" Thalia said

 **We were interrupted. I left my shield behind. I want you to fetch it for me. "**

 **"Why don't you go back and get it yourself?"**

 **The fire in his eye sockets glowed a little hotter.**

"You enjoy pushing gods off their limits, don't you?" Reyna asked him

"So I've been told"

 **"Why don't I turn you into a prairie dog and run you over with my Harley?**

"And here's another god threatening to turn him into something" Jason said

 **Because I don't feel like it. A god is giving you an opportunity to prove yourself,** **Percy** **Jackson** **. Will you prove yourself a coward?"**

"Daddy's not a coward" Amethyst frowned again

"You've been frowning a lot lately Amy" her sister told her

"Because he's so mean and I don't like it" she whined

 **He leaned forward. "Or maybe you only fight when there's a river to dive into, so your daddy can protect you. "**

The eleven-year-old Jackson frowned again

 **I wanted to punch this guy, but somehow, I knew he was waiting for that. Ares' power was causing my anger. He'd love it if I attacked. I didn't want to give him the satisfaction.**

Annabeth smiled. Sometimes Percy being stubborn saves him from getting killed.

 **"We're not interested," I said. "We've already got a** **quest** **. "**

 **Ares's fiery eyes made me see things I didn't want to see—blood and smoke and corpses on the battlefield. "I know all** **about** **your** **quest** **, punk. When that item was first** **stolen** **, Zeus sent his best out looking for it: Apollo, Athena, Artemis, and me, naturally. If I couldn't sniff out a weapon that** **powerful** **. . . " He licked his lips, as if the very thought of the** **master** **bolt made him hungry.**

"Probably" Thalia muttered

 **"Well . . . if I couldn't find it, you got no hope. Nevertheless, I'm trying to give you the benefit of the doubt. Your dad and I go way back. After all, I'm the one who told him my suspicions** **about** **old Corpse Breath. "**

"Is he trying to make the war worse?" Frank asked

"Yep" was all Percy answered

"Why?!"

"Because he's the War god"

 **"You told him Hades stole the bolt?"**

 **"Sure. Framing somebody to start a war. Oldest trick in the book. I recognized it immediately. In a way, you got me to thank for your little** **quest** **. "**

"No thank you"

 **"Thanks," I grumbled.**

 **"Hey, I'm a generous guy. Just do my little job, and I'll help you on your way. I'll arrange a ride west for you and your** **friends** **. "**

 **"We're doing fine on our own. "**

 **"Yeah, right. No money. No wheels. No clue what you're up** **again** **st. Help me out, and maybe I'll tell you something you need to know. Something** **about** **your mom. "**

"That's how he got your attention" Calypso said looking at Percy

 **"My mom?"**

 **He grinned. "That got your attention. The water park is a mile west on Delancy. You can't miss it. Look for the Tunnel of Love ride. "**

"Your parents in the Tunnel of Love" Jessy smirked at Trina

"Writing it down" Trina replied while writing on her notebook

"I don't think future me is going to be happy" Percy muttered looking at Trina who had just finished writing on her notebook

"Nope. You will not" Amy laughed

 **"What interrupted your date?" I asked. "Something scare you off?"**

"Percy!" A few of them groaned

 **Ares bared his teeth, but I'd seen his threatening look before on Clarisse. There was something false** **about** **it, almost like he was nervous.**

"Nervous about what?" Leo asked

"You'll see"

"Nervous about what?" Leo repeated

 **"You're lucky you met me, punk, and not one of the other** **Olympians** **. They're not as forgiving of rudeness as I am. I'll meet you back here when you're done. Don't disappoint me. "**

"Isn't he the rude one?" Rachel asked

"Yeah. But we can't really do anything about that. He's a god" Annabeth said

"One of the Olympians too" Reyna added

 **After that I must have fainted, or fallen into a trance, because when I opened my eyes** **again** **, Ares was gone. I might've thought the conversation had been a dream, but Annabeth and Grover's expressions told me otherwise.**

 **"Not good," Grover said. "Ares sought you out,** **Percy** **. This is not good. "**

"Really Really not good" Grover said

 **I stared out the window. The motorcycle had disappeared.**

 **Did Ares really know something** **about** **my mom, or was he just playing with me? Now that he was gone, all the anger had drained out of me. I realized Ares must love to mess with peoples emotions.**

"Yes he does" Percy answered his book self

 **That was his power—cranking up the passions so badly, they clouded your ability to think.**

 **"Its probably some kind of trick," I said. "Forget Ares. Lets just go."**

"You can't" Trina told him

 **"We cant," Annabeth said.**

Everyone looked at Trina

"Like mother, like daughter. I know!" she grumbled

 **"Look, I hate Ares as much as anybody, but you don't ignore the gods unless you want serious bad fortune. He wasn't kidding** **about** **turning you into a rodent. "**

 **I looked down at my cheeseburger,** **which** **suddenly didn't seem so appetizing. "Why does he need us?"**

"Why do gods need us?" Hazel asked

"We need them as much as they need us" Piper told her remembering what her mother has told her before.

"We can't exist without the gods, and the gods would fade away without us" Annabeth said

 **"Maybe its a problem that requires brains," Annabeth said. "Ares has strength. That's all he has. Even strength has to bow to wisdom sometimes. "**

Everyone nodded their heads in agreement to Annabeth, and the said girl smiled.

 **"But this water park . . . he acted almost scared. What would make a war god run away like that?"**

"Yeah what would?" Reyna asked she was really curious as to why Mars…. Ares would act scared because of a water park

 **Annabeth and Grover glanced nervously at each other.**

 **Annabeth said, "I'm afraid well have to find out. "**

"As always" muttered the demigods remembering how they had found out certain things of information by risking their lives first.

 **The sun was sinking behind the** **mount** **ain's by the time we found the water park. Judging from the sign, it once had been called WATERLAND, but now some of the letters were smashed out, so it read WAT R A D.**

 **The main gate was padlocked and topped with barbed wire. Inside, huge dry waterslide's and tubes and pipes**

"pipes" Leo smirked and poked Piper "Hi Pipes!"

"Shut up, Leo"

"Of course, Pipes"

"I mean it Valdez"

 **curled everywhere, leading to empty pools. Old tickets and advertisements fluttered around the asphalt. With night coming on, the place looked sad and creepy.**

"Your thoughts are sad and creepy" Thalia grumbled "You really are pessimistic, Jackson"

"Which Jackson?" Amethyst asked teasingly knowing full well that there was only one pessimistic Jackson in the room

"Again with this question, kid?" Thalia asked

"It's fun" Amethyst smiled

 **"If Ares** **bring** **s his girlfriend here for a date," I said, staring up at the barbed wire, "I'd hate to see what she looks like. "**

Piper frowned. It was her mother after all.

 **"** **Percy** **," Annabeth warned. "Be more respectful. "**

"When will that happen?" Thalia snorted

"More like rarely or never" Annabeth answered

 **"Why? I thought you hated Ares. "**

"Ares, yes. His girlfriend, No" Annabeth answered him. If she hated Aphrodite, who know what would've happened to Annabeth's lovelife.

 **"He's still a god. And his girlfriend is very temperamental. "**

"No…. she's" Piper started then agreed with Annabeth "Yeah she kind of is"

"Isn't the sea temperamental?" Rachel asked

"Yep. And my girlfriend is too" Josh said before getting hit in the head with a notebook by his girlfriend. "OW"

"You were saying, babe?" she asked innocently

"Let's just read" he muttered patting the back of his head

 **"You don't want to insult her looks," Grover added.**

"Don't ever" Piper warned

 **"Who is she? Echidna?"**

 **"No, Aphrodite," Grover said, a little dreamily. "Goddess of love. "**

 **"I thought she was married to somebody," I said. "Hephaestus. "**

"Wait!" Leo interrupted "Does that mean Piper and I are practically step siblings?"

"In a way, maybe?" Annabeth answered "But the godly side doesn't really count unless it's your parent"

"Piper and Frank are practically almost step siblings. And Piper and I are practically step siblings as well. What does that make Frank and I?" Leo asked further

"Nothing" Annabeth answered

"Trust me, Leo. You're just going to get confused if you try figuring out who you are related or almost relate to in the godly side"

"Aren't you two practically cousins as well?" Leo asked Josh and Trina "Since Zeus and Poseidon are brothers?"

"Leo! Stop it!" Piper cried out

 **"What's your point?" he asked.**

"You make it sound like marriage shouldn't be taken seriously" Jessy told Grover

"Sorry"

"You sound like Hera" Piper told her

Jessy huffed and crossed her arms over her chest "That's because you two" she said pointing at Jason and Piper "Raised us" she continued pointing at Josh "at a family with a perfectly good environment, and a perfectly good family relationship. Where marriage and love was taken seriously, where lovers do not ignore each other but instead talk about problems instead of hiding it from each other"

Josh gave his sister a look, while Trina was trying not to burst out laughing, Nick was biting his tongue to prevent him from laughing, Amethyst a long with the other's didn't know what was going on. Alex looked down, and Piper had the feeling that the last one wasn't addressed to her and Jason, but was meant for someone else.

"What?" she asked after all the looks she was getting

"Should I just read?" Reyna asked her

"Yes please"

 **"Oh. " I suddenly felt the need to change the subject. "So how do we get in?"**

 **"Maia!" Grover's shoes sprouted wings.**

 **He flew over the fence, did an unintended somersault in midair, then stumbled to a landing on the opposite side. He dusted off his jeans, as if he'd planned the whole thing. "You guys coming?"**

"Easy for you to say, you had magic shoes" Percy grumbled

 **Annabeth and I had to climb the old-fashioned way, holding down the barbed wire for each other as we crawled over the top.**

 **The shadows grew long as we walked through the park, checking out the attractions. There was Ankle Biter Island, Head Over Wedgie, and Dude, Wheres My Swimsuit?**

 **No** **monsters** **came to get us. Nothing made the slightest noise.**

"You might jinx it Percy!" Will told him

"I know. I learned that the hard way"

 **We found a souvenir shop that had been left open. Merchandise still lined the shelves: snow globes, pencils, postcards, and racks of—**

 **"Clothes," Annabeth said. "Fresh clothes. "**

 **"Yeah," I said. "But you cant just—"**

 **"Watch me. "**

"No way!" Leo said

"Yes way" Grover confirmed

"Annabeth you stole from a souvenir shop!" Leo explained "Wait till the Stolls her about this!"

"I am so writing this down" Trina said

"It was abandoned! It wasn't stealing" Annabeth cried out defending herself

"It still sort of is Annabeth, you took something that wasn't yours" Hazel told her friend

 **She snatched an entire row of stuff of the racks and disappeared into the changing room. A few minutes later she came out in Waterland flower-print shorts, a big red Waterland T-shirt, and commemorative Waterland surf shoes. A Waterland backpack was slung over her shoulder, obviously stuffed with more goodies.**

 **"What the heck. " Grover shrugged. Soon, all three of us were decked out like** **walking** **advertisements for the defunct theme park.**

Leo and Trina's eyes were as wide as saucers

"Writing this down!" she cried out while Leo teased the three walking advertisements

 **We continued searching for the Tunnel of Love. I got the feeling that the whole park was holding its breath. "So Ares and Aphrodite," I said, to keep my mind off the growing dark, "they have a thing going?"**

"You didn't know?" Calypso asked

"Even I knew that" Rachel told him "and I knew that way before I met you"

 **"That's old gossip,** **Percy** **," Annabeth told me. "Three-thousand-year-old gossip."**

 **"What about Aphrodite's husband?"**

"Yeah what about my dad!?" Leo cried out

 **"Well, you know," she said. "Hephaestus. The blacksmith. He was crippled when he was a baby, thrown off Mount Olympus by Zeus.**

"Gee Jason. It's a good thing you and Thalia are good looking, if not Zeus might have thrown you off your house too" Leo told them

The Grace siblings looked at Leo then decided to just carry on with reading the book, and waited for Reyna to continue reading. Though Leo got Jason thinking 'what if?' would his dad not be proud of him if he did turn out crippled and ugly? Hephaestus was his son too but he thrown him off Olympus just because of his physical appearance. Do the Olympians really care about their looks that much?

 **So he isn't exactly handsome. Clever with his hands, and all, but Aphrodite isn't into brains and talent, you know?"**

Piper and Jessy frowned but didn't say anything

 **"She likes bikers. "**

"and actors" Jessy said referring to her grandfather Tristan Mclean

 **"Whatever. "**

 **"Hephaestus knows?"**

"Everybody knows!"

 **"Oh sure," Annabeth said. "He caught them together once. I mean, literally caught them, in a golden net, and invited all the gods to come and laugh at them. Hephaestus is always trying to embarrass them. That's why they meet in out-of-the-way places, like . . . "**

 **She stopped, looking straight ahead. "Like that. "**

 **In front of us was an empty pool that would've been awesome for skateboarding.**

"You tried to teach me how to skateboard once" Josh told Percy

"I did?" Percy asked suddenly very interested "How'd it go?"

"Not really my thing" Josh shrugged and Percy pouted he really wanted to have sons and daughters in the future. But it looked like he only had daughters, knowing that he had two daughters was great but he wished he had a son too.

 **It was at least fifty yards across and shaped like a bowl.**

 **Around the rim, a dozen bronze statues of Cupid stood guard with wings spread and bows ready to fire.**

Jason and Nico frowned at the mention of cupid. Love wasn't a nice guy.

 **On the opposite side from us, a tunnel opened up, probably where the water flowed into when the pool was full. The sign above it read, THRILL RIDE O LOVE: THIS IS NOT YOUR PARENTS TUNNEL OF LOVE!**

 **Grover crept toward the edge. "Guys, look. "**

 **Marooned at the bottom of the pool was a pink-and-white two-seater boat with a canopy over the top and little hearts painted all over it. In the left seat, glinting in the fading light, was Ares' shield, a polished circle of bronze.**

"That was easy" Jason said "Too easy"

"I know right?" Percy said frowning at how Ares had tricked them

 **"This is too easy," I said. "So we just walk down there and get it?"**

 **Annabeth ran her fingers along the base of the nearest Cupid statue.**

 **"There's a Greek letter carved here," she said. "Eta. I wonder . . . "**

Leo perked up, that was his father's symbol. 'This didn't sound so good' Leo thought to himself he was sure that there would be a trap there somewhere.

 **"Grover," I said, "you smell any monsters?"**

 **He sniffed the wind. "Nothing. "**

 **"Nothing—like, in-the-Arch-and-you-didnt-smell-Echidna nothing, or really nothing?"**

"That's mean. Satyr's aren't good with underground places" Amethyst told Percy

"Sorry"

 **Grover looked hurt. "I told you, that was underground. "**

 **"Okay, I'm sorry. " I took a deep breath. "I'm going down there. "**

 **"I'll go with you. " Grover didn't sound too enthusiastic, but I got the feeling he was trying to make up for what had happened in St. Louis.**

"I was" Grover admitted

"Sorry G-man" Percy apologized for being mean

 **"No," I told him. "I want you to stay up top with the flying shoes. You're the Red Baron, a flying ace, remember? I'll be counting on you for backup, in case something goes wrong. "**

"Now that's nice" Amethyst smiled at Percy who smiled at her in return

 **Grover puffed up his chest a little. "Sure. But what could go wrong?"**

"You jinxed it" Frank told him

 **"I don't know. Just a feeling. Annabeth, come with me—"**

"Oh my gods!" Jessy squealed

 **"Are you kidding?" She looked at me as if I'd just dropped from the moon. Her cheeks were bright red.**

"Trina write that down!" Amethyst told her older sister

"Writing it as we speak" she answered

 **"Whats the problem now?" I demanded.**

"Seriously Percy?" the girls in the room muttered

 **"Me, go with you to the . . . the Thrill Ride of Love? How embarrassing is that? What if somebody saw me?"**

"Who's going to see you?" Leo asked girls are complicated

 **"Who's going to see you?" But my face was burning now, too.**

"Yeah Annabeth who's going to see you? That place is abandoned! Girls are complicated" Leo muttered and some of the guys agreed.

"Boys are just dense!" Annabeth argued

"No we're not" Leo tried to argue but then Reyna had started reading

 **Leave it to a girl to make everything complicated. "Fine," I told her. "I'll do it myself. " But when I started down the side of the pool, she followed me, muttering about how boys always messed things up.**

"That's true" Piper agreed

"HEY!" cried out the boys

"It really is true" agreed the girls

"Can't we just have gender equality?" Amethyst asked exasperated

"What?"

"Girls can be complicated, boys can be complicated too. Boys can mess things up, girls can mess things up too. Everybody can be complicated and mess up! Stop with the fighting!"

Everyone went silent for a while until Reyna had decided to continue reading

 **We reached the boat. The shield was propped on one seat, and next to it was a lady's silk scarf.**

'Mom probably had that scarf enchanted of something' Piper thought

 **I tried to imagine Ares and Aphrodite here, a couple of gods meeting in a junked-out amusement-park ride. Why? Then I noticed something I hadn't seen from up top: mirrors all the way around the rim of the pool, facing this spot. We could see ourselves no matter which direction we looked. That must be it. While Ares and Aphrodite were smooching with each other they could look at their favorite people: themselves.**

Piper rolled her eyes

 **I picked up the scarf. It shimmered pink, and the perfume was indescribable—rose, or mountain laurel. Something good. I smiled, a little dreamy, and was about to rub the scarf against my cheek when Annabeth ripped it out of my hand and stuffed it in her pocket. "Oh, no you don't. Stay away from that love magic. "**

Jessy's eyes lit up "Do you still have it?"

"Nope"

"Where'd you put it?"

"That's a secret"

"Who would you use love magic on anyway?" Josh asked

Jessy blushed a little "You'll never know when you'll need it"

 **"What?"**

 **"Just get the shield, Seaweed Brain, and lets get out of here. "**

"That didn't go the way as planned didn't it?" Trina asked

"No it did not"

 **The moment I touched the shield, I knew we were in trouble. My hand broke through something that had been connecting it to the dashboard. A cobweb, I thought, but then I looked at a strand of it on my palm and saw it was some kind of metal filament, so fine it was almost invisible. A trip wire.**

"Oh no" Leo muttered

 **"Wait," Annabeth said.**

 **"Too late. "**

 **"There's another Greek letter on the side of the boat, another Eta. This is a trap. "**

"A very very good trap, if my dad made it" Leo said

"and if it was made for two gods, that just makes it even worse" Will added

 **Noise erupted all around us, of a million gears grinding, as if the whole pool were turning into one giant machine.**

"It probably was" Leo told them

 **Grover yelled, "Guys!"**

 **Up on the rim, the Cupid statues were drawing their bows into firing position. Before I could suggest taking cover, they shot, but not at us. They fired at each other, across the rim of the pool. Silky cables trailed from the arrows, arcing over the pool and anchoring where they landed to form a huge golden asterisk. Then smaller metallic threads started weaving together magically between the main strands, making a net.**

 **"We have to get out," I said.**

"DUH!" Rachel cried out

 **"Duh!" Annabeth said.**

Rachel and Annabeth looked at each other then laughed

 **I grabbed the shield and we ran, but going up the slope of the pool was not as easy as going down.**

"It's because of the" Annabeth started she was going to explain the scientific reason why it was harder to go up than down the slope when Grover yelled

"READ REYNA PLEASE!"

 **"Come on!" Grover shouted.**

 **He was trying to hold open a section of the net for us, but wherever he touched it, the golden threads started to wrap around his hands.**

 **The Cupids heads popped open. Out came video cameras. Spotlights rose up all around the pool, blinding us with illumination, and a loudspeaker voice boomed: "Live to Olympus in one minute . . . Fifty-nine seconds, fifty-eight . . . "**

"Oh no" a few of them muttered

 **"Hephaestus!" Annabeth screamed. "I'm so stupid.**

Amethyst gasped much like the other demigods in the room and then all looked at Annabeth. Then Amethyst and Trina looked at each other before Trina said "I am so writing that down!"

While Annabeth groaned and just gestured for Reyna to continue reading

 **Eta is H. He made this trap to catch his wife with Ares. Now were going to be broadcast live to Olympus and look like absolute fools!"**

 **We'd almost made it to the rim when the row of mirrors opened like hatches and thousands of tiny metallic . . . things poured out.**

 **Annabeth screamed.**

 **It was an army of wind-up creepy-crawlies: bronze-gear bodies, spindly legs, little pincer mouths, all scuttling toward us in a wave of clacking, whirring metal.**

 **"Spiders!" Annabeth said. "Sp—sp—aaaah!"**

Annabeth tensed and Percy wrapped his arms around her and kissed her cheek. Even Trina and Amethyst had looked scared at the mention of spiders. Josh hugged his girlfriend tight and kissed her forehead. While Jessy went over to Amy and gave her a reassuring hug as well.

 **I'd never seen her like this before. She fell backward in terror and almost got overwhelmed by the spider robots before I pulled her up and dragged her back toward the boat.**

 **The things were coming out from all around the rim now, millions of them, flooding toward the center of the pool, completely surrounding us. I told myself they probably weren't programmed to kill, just corral us and bite us and make us look stupid. Then again, this was a trap meant for gods. And we weren't gods.**

 **Annabeth and I climbed into the boat. I started kicking away the spiders as they swarmed aboard. I yelled at Annabeth to help me, but she was too paralyzed to do much more than scream.**

"Sorry about that" Percy whispered to Annabeth who nodded her head

 **"Thirty, twenty-nine," called the loudspeaker.**

 **The spiders started spitting out strands of metal thread, trying to tie us down. The strands were easy enough to break at first, but there were so many of them, and the spiders just kept coming. I kicked one away from Annabeth's leg and its pincers took a chunk out of my new surf shoe.**

"I wonder if I could make something like that" Leo muttered loud enough for the three girls who were afraid of spiders to hear

"NO!" they all screamed in unison and Amethyst hugged Jessy tighter clearly scared of the idea of Leo making mechanical spiders

 **Grover hovered above the pool in his flying sneakers, trying to pull the net loose, but it wouldn't budge.**

 **Think, I told myself. Think.**

"Was it hard?" Thalia scoffed smiling

"Shut up"

 **The Tunnel of Love entrance was under the net. We could use it as an exit, except that it was blocked by a million robot spiders.**

 **"Fifteen, fourteen," the loudspeaker called.**

 **Water, I thought. Where does the rides water come from?**

"Hmm Good thinking" Thalia praised

"Glad you approve" Percy mused

 **Then I saw them: huge water pipes**

"Pipes" Leo snickered and got smacked under the head by Piper

 **behind the mirrors, where the spiders had come from. And up above the net, next to one of the Cupids, a glass-windowed booth that must be the controllers station.**

 **"Grover!" I yelled. "Get into that booth! Find the on switch!"**

 **"But—"**

 **"Do it!" It was a crazy hope, but it was our only chance.**

"I think you rely too much on crazy hopes" Will said

"That's Percy for you" Grover said

"Hey Crazy is my middle name" Percy laughed

"and so is dumb risk taker" Annabeth added laughing

"Don't forget sassy" Rachel said

 **The spiders were all over the prow of the boat now. Annabeth was screaming her head off. I had to get us out of there.**

 **Grover was in the controllers booth now, slamming away at the buttons.**

 **"Five, four—"**

 **Grover looked up at me hopelessly, raising his hands. He was letting me know that he'd pushed every button, but still nothing was happening.**

 **I closed my eyes and thought about waves, rushing water, the Mississippi River. I felt a familiar tug in my gut. I tried to imagine that I was dragging the ocean all the way to Denver.**

 **"Two, one, zero!"**

 **Water exploded out of the pipes.**

"AWESOME!"

 **It roared into the pool, sweeping away the spiders. I pulled Annabeth into the seat next to me and fastened her seat belt just as the tidal wave slammed into our boat, over the top, whisking the spiders away and dousing us completely, but not capsizing us. The boat turned, lifted in the flood, and spun in circles around the whirlpool.**

 **The water was full of short-circuiting spiders, some of them smashing against the pools concrete wall with such force they burst.**

"If I make them, I should probably make them water proof" Leo muttered

"Nooooo" Amethyst whined

"I won't let them go near you" he told her

"Promise?"

"Promise"

 **Spotlights glared down at us. The Cupid-cams were rolling, live to Olympus.**

 **But I could only concentrate on controlling the boat. I willed it to ride the current, to keep away from the wall. Maybe it was my imagination, but the boat seemed to respond. At least, it didn't break into a million pieces. We spun around one last time, the water level now almost high enough to shred us against the metal net. Then the boats nose turned toward the tunnel and we rocketed through into the darkness.**

 **Annabeth and I held tight, both of us screaming as the boat shot curls and hugged corners and took forty-five-degree plunges past pictures of Romeo and Juliet and a bunch of other Valentines Day stuff.**

"I love Valentines day" Jessy muttered stroking Amy's hair

"You love everything related to love" Nick told her

"Love is fun" she smiled

 **Then we were out of the tunnel, the night air whistling through our hair as the boat barreled straight toward the exit.**

 **If the ride had been in working order, we would've sailed off a ramp between the golden Gates of Love and splashed down safely in the exit pool. But there was a problem. The Gates of Love were chained. Two boats that had been washed out of the tunnel before us were now piled against the barricade—one submerged, the other cracked in half.**

"Not good" Hazel shook her head

 **"Unfasten your seat belt," I yelled to Annabeth.**

"Why?" Reyna asked

 **"Are you crazy?"**

"Yes he is" a few muttered and nodded their heads

 **"Unless you want to get smashed to death. " I strapped Ares' shield to my arm. "Were going to have to jump for it. " My idea was simple and insane.**

"Like most of my ideas, I know" Percy said before Thalia or any of the others could open their mouth to comment

 **As the boat struck, we would use its force like a springboard to jump the gate. I'd heard of people surviving car crashes that way, getting thrown thirty or forty feet away from an accident. With luck, we would land in the pool.**

"But is luck always on your side?" Rachel asked him

"Nope"

 **Annabeth seemed to understand. She gripped my hand as the gates got closer.**

 **"On my mark," I said.**

 **"No! On my mark!"**

 **"What?"**

 **"Simple physics!" she yelled. "Force times the trajectory angle—"**

"What?" Frank asked

"Force times the" Annabeth started

"I regret asking" Frank told her "Please read Reyna"

Annabeth scowled but didn't say anything

 **"Fine. " I shouted. "On your mark!"**

 **She hesitated . . . hesitated . . . then yelled, "Now!"**

 **Crack!**

 **Annabeth was right.**

"As always" everyone muttered and laughed

 **If we'd jumped when I thought we should've, we would've crashed into the gates. She got us maximum lift.**

"Mom saved your butt yet again" Trina said

"Speaking of butt who's got the best butt again?" Jessy laughed looking at Trina

"Shut up"

"What?" Percy asked

"Well at our school there's this thing where" Jessy started but received a glare from her brother that made her stop talking "You know what let's talk about it later"

"No we want to hear it now!" Annabeth told Jess

"Your daughter was voted best butt by some kids at school, but my brother doesn't like hearing about it, so let's carry on please" Jessy explained

 **Unfortunately, that was a little more than we needed. Our boat smashed into the pileup and we were thrown into the air, straight over the gates, over the pool, and down toward solid asphalt.**

 **Something grabbed me from behind.**

 **Annabeth yelled, "Ouch!"**

 **Grover!**

 **In midair, he had grabbed me by the shirt, and Annabeth by the arm, and was trying to pull us out of a crash landing, but Annabeth and I had all the momentum.**

 **"You're too heavy!" Grover said. "Were going down!"**

"I'm yelling timber" Nick sang

And everyone looked at him

"What? It's from a song" he shrugged "Couldn't help it"

"We should just read before he sings the whole song" Josh said

 **We spiraled toward the ground, Grover doing his best to slow the fall.**

 **We smashed into a photo-board, Grover's head going** **straight** **into the hole where tourists would put their faces, pretending to be Noo-Noo the Friendly Whale.**

Everyone in the room burst out laughing, when the laughter had died down, Reyna resumed reading.

 **Annabeth and I tumbled to the ground, banged up but alive. Ares shield was still on my arm.**

 **Once we caught our breath, Annabeth and I got Grover out of the photo-board and thanked him for saving our lives. I looked back at the Thrill Ride of Love. The water was subsiding. Our boat had been smashed to pieces** **again** **st the gates.**

"Its a good thing you listened to Annabeth" Leo said

"Or more like he didn't want to listen to Annabeth's physics explanation" Will told him

"Nah. I learned after that to always listen to Annabeth" Percy said

 **A hundred yards away, at the entrance pool, the Cupids were still filming. The statues had swiveled so that their cameras were trained** **straight** **on us, the spotlights in our faces.**

 **"Shows over!" I yelled. "Thank you! Good night!"**

 **The Cupids turned back to their original positions. The lights shut off. The park went quiet and dark** **again** **, except for the gentle trickle of water into the Thrill Ride of Loves exit pool. I wondered if** **Olympus** **had gone to a commercial break, or if our ratings had been any good.**

"You're seriously wondering about that?" Piper asked and Percy nodded

 **I hated being teased. I hated being tricked. And I had plenty of experience handling bullies who liked to do that stuff to me. I hefted the shield on my arm and turned to my** **friends** **. "We need to have a little talk with Ares. "**

"That's the end of the chapter" Reyna said "So Dinner?"

"FOOOOOD!" Grover cried out

 **HELLO EVERYONE HOW ARE YOU? HOPE YOU LIKE THIS CHAPTER! TELL ME YOUR THOUGHTS IN A REVIEW! SEE YOU NEXT CHAPTER! XOXO, CHINFEV1203**


	23. Fourth Dinner : Fourth Night

DINNER TIME

Like all the other meals that they have had since they arrived, everyone piled up in the dining room, took their seats, served themselves and started eating. While they were eating, Nico hadn't noticed that Will went to his room to retrieve one of his medical kits, that just so happened to contain the vaccines that he was talking about earlier at Lunch. He also hadn't noticed that before Will left he had whispered to Jason, Frank, and Reyna to quickly grab Nico as soon as he returns. When Will got back the three demigods quickly grabbed Nico and pinned him down on one of the chairs.

"WHAT IN HADES NAME IS GOING ON?!" Nico shouted "I DON'T LIKE BEING TOUCHED"

"Sit down, Nico" Piper charmspeaked him "Will is just going to give you a few vaccines. It's for your own good of course"

"This will just be really quick" Will told him

"NO!" Nico shouted struggling at the grip of the three demigods

The three continued to pin down Nico on the chair, as Will was giving Nick and Alex instructions about Hazel and Calypso's vaccines.

"Why do you have vaccines in your room again?" Alex asked

"This is from our supply back at camp, don't know why its in my room though" Will answered

Nick was giving Hazel her vaccines, while Alex was in charge of Calypso. Nico was trying to kick Will, so Percy and Leo had helped by grabbing both of his legs to prevent him from kicking Will.

Alex looked over at Nico and then looked at Will "Hey Will, isn't that against patients rights? Shouldn't you respect the patients decision to not get a vaccine?"

"But he's not my patient, he's my boyfriend" Will answered

"But Will"

"Listen to Alex!" Nico cried out

"Nope" Will said then injected Nico with a vaccine

When the three sons of Apollo were done giving the vaccines, Hazel and Calypso continued to eat while Nico was grumbling and glaring at Will and at everyone who had helped pin him down on the chair.

"I hate all of you" he grumbled and sat on the far corner of the table, away from Will as much as possible. Everyone scooted away from Nico and continued on with their dinner.

"He's really mad at you" Piper told Will

"He'll get over it" Will replied and started eating

After dinner….

Hazel and Rachel were in Jessy's room to get their hair done.

"Do you really love doing other people's hair?" Hazel asked

"I love it! I love doing people's hair, makeup, matching their outfits! It relaxes me!" Jess answered cheerfully as she brushed Hazel's hair

"Sort of like me with my paintings" Rachel said and grabbed one of Jessy's hairbrushes

"Exactly like that! Make up is an art too you know" Jess replied and continued to brush Hazel's hair

Meanwhile…..

"Where's your sister?" Annabeth asked Amethyst while they were hanging out in Percy's room

"Probably in Josh's room" the girl answered

"WHAT!?" Percy cried out sitting up from the bed and looking at Annabeth like they should do or say something

"They always hang out in each others room" Amethyst explained

"But" Percy started but was cut off by Annabeth

"Oh come on Seaweed brain. I'm in your room right now"

"But that's different!"

"How?" Annabeth and Amethyst asked in unison

Percy grumbled for a while but decided to let the topic slide

"Okay next word" Annabeth said

They were currently playing scrabble and obviously Percy was losing to the two girls. Why they played scrabble when the three of them has dyslexia, he didn't know.

In the other room….

Piper, Calypso, Reyna and Thalia were hanging out in Piper's room and were talking among themselves. Calypso was feeling really shy and awkward when they had arrived. Meeting all these new people after being stuck in her island for so long could be a little overwhelming but everyone had made her feel welcome, especially the girls. The four of them were talking about random out of the blue things, and it just made Calypso so happy to feel like a normal teenager for once. Piper being the only girl in the room that sort of lived like a normal teenager (being that Thalia turned to a tree, Calypso was stuck in an island, and Reyna was in Circe's island then became Praetor) was telling them stories about how it was like when she was living with her dad while he was busy being an actor.

In the game room….

Alex, Nick, Grover, Jason, Frank and Leo were playing a few video games. Jason was sitting next to Alex and Nick and they were having a conversation. Jason realized that he actually didn't mind that Alex was dating his daughter. From what Jason could tell, Alex was a really great guy and he and Jason were getting along great. Though, there is this minor issue that he broke Jessy's heart. Jason knew that both his past and future self would agree that they didn't like that at all. Meanwhile Leo was being Leo and was making jokes about Frank, and Grover was trying to play mediator, making sure that the two didn't end up fighting for real.

While almost all of the demigods were in groups, two of the demigods were alone in their room. Nico was sleeping, while Will was thinking about when he could get Nico to drink his vitamins.

And the couple that Perseus Jackson was worried about earlier was indeed together and was sitting in Josh's bed. Trina was trying to read a book, while Josh was playing with her hair.

A little while later, after Jess was done with Hazel and Rachel's hair she decided to drop by her brothers room. She didn't need to knock, actually she never knocks on Josh's bedroom door she just opens the door and enters like its her own room. She found the couple on the bed, Trina was reading and Josh had his arms wrapped around her. It amazes Jess that they were already sent here by the fates to read a book, and in her spare time what does her best friend do? Still reading a book. A different book.

"Hi" Jessy greeted them and sat on the bed

"Babe, can you leave me alone with my sister for a bit? I'll drop by your room later" Josh asked Trina

Oh no this was serious if Josh wanted Trina to leave, Jess thought to herself while trying to calm herself down. To be honest, right now she didn't know what her brother was thinking. Jess knew her brother really well, but right now she was pretty clueless.

"Okay" Trina replied and placed a bookmark in between the pages of her book then kissed Josh before standing up to leave. She hugged Jess before leaving and whispered in her ear discreetly "Don't worry" and then she left closing the door behind her. Jess whished Trina had stayed, she had a feeling the her brother could be mad at Alex and thus mad at her that she was thinking of giving him a second chance. If anyone could calm down Josh it would be Trina. Josh doesn't normally get mad at Jess, but when he does Jess doesn't really know what to do. She was usually the one that gets mad a lot.

Josh was quiet for a few minutes and it was prolonging Jessy's anxiety. "You still love him don't you?" He asked her

"Are you mad?"

"What did mom say about answering a question with another question?" Josh laughed and threw a pillow at her "Do you still love him or not?"

"Yes" she answered

"What do you plan to do now?"

"I honestly don't know Joshy" she spread out her arms for a hug and Josh smiled at her before hugging her

"Follow your heart" he told her

"What if it gets smashed to pieces again?"

"Then we'll pick up the pieces and throw a lightning bolt at Alex"

"So…. You aren't mad?"

"Never. I'm just here to support my sister. I just want you to be happy"

Jess couldn't help but punch her brothers shoulder "Then why'd you made Trina leave?! That made me nervous!"

"Don't you want a brother sister moment with just the two of us?" He asked her and hugged her tighter

"Yeah this actually feels amazing. Thank you brother dearest"

"Anytime. And hey if you two do get back together tell Alex I need to talk to him one on one. Okay?"

"Sir Yes Sir" she saluted her brother and the two of the burst out laughing.

She didn't know if she and Alex would actually get back together. But knowing that her brother was there to support her in whatever decision she makes was the best feeling ever.

After the twins had their brother-sister moment, Jess went back to her room and Josh went to check on his girlfriend. He found her sitting on her bed, still reading her book.

"Hey" No response

"Trina" Nothing

Josh sighed and sat beside her, she had her eyebrows scrunched up in concentration and eyes focused on the book. He quickly placed a bookmark then closed the book and took it away from Trina.

"Hey!"

"That's it, for now, babe, you're already tired, you need to rest"

"One more chapter" she whined but he could already see her eyes closing

"Nope. Go to sleep. You can read again tomorrow"

Trina groaned but went to sleep anyways, Josh gave her a quick kiss goodnight before leaving her room.

 **OMG! I AM SO SORRY THAT THIS TOOK SO LONG! I WAS SUPER BUSY AND DIDN'T HAVE MUCH TIME TO WRITE THIS CHAPTER. I WANTED THIS TO BE LONGER BUT I ALSO WANT TO UPDATED TODAY. ANYWAYS HERE YOU GO GUYS! I HOPE YOU LIKE IT.**

 **WILL TRY TO UPDATE SOONER NEXT TIME. TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT THIS CHAPTER!**

 **XOXO**

 **CHINFEV1203**


	24. Chapter 16: Calypso

When Josh Grace had gotten back to his room he saw his sister already in her pajamas, sitting on his bed.

"Can I sleep here tonight?" She asked him putting on her best puppy dog eyes

"Can I ask why?"

"If I don't sleep here I might do something irrational like get back together with my ex without thinking about the matter properly" she muttered really fast but Josh was able to understand what she said

"Of course" he smiled at his sister

Back when they were kids Josh and Jess had shared a room together and Jess would always wake him up whenever she had nightmares or woke up in the middle of the night. Even now that they had separate rooms she still does that when she has nightmares or just when she wants some company or to think things through. Josh even noticed that Jess even brought her favorite stuffed piglet that their dad had gotten her. She really was confused.

The next morning…..

Nico and Will had surprisingly made up and were back to normal. Hazel and Rachel had new hairstyles and everyone loved it and praised Jess for her work. The couples were sitting next to each other and were all busy talking.

Everyone had their breakfast and once they were all done they all headed to the living room to continue reading the book.

 **16\. WE TAKE A ZEBRA TO VEGAS** Calypso read **  
**" A Zebra?" Piper asked

"First a pink poodle now a Zebra to Vegas?" Leo asked "What's next?"

"Grover talking to the Zebra?" Will suggested

"Nah that'll be normal" Thalia said **  
The war god was waiting for us in the diner parking lot.  
"Well, well," he said. "You didn't get yourself killed. "  
**A few people in the room growled at this **  
"You knew it was a trap," I said.  
** "A trap for Ares" Trina snorted **  
Ares gave me a wicked grin. "Bet that crippled blacksmith was surprised when he netted a couple of stupid kids. You looked good on TV. "  
** "Dad looks good anywhere" Amy said **  
I shoved his shield at him. "You're a jerk. "  
** "He sure is" Percy agreed with his past self **  
Annabeth and Grover caught their breath.  
Ares grabbed the shield and spun it in the air like pizza dough. It changed form, melting into a bulletproof vest. He slung it across his back.  
"See that truck over there?" He pointed to an eighteen-wheeler parked across the street from the diner. "That's your ride. Take you straight to L. A. , with one stop in Vegas. "  
**"That's not a Zebra" Leo said **  
The eighteen-wheeler had a sign on the back, which I could read only because it was reverse-printed white on black, a good combination for dyslexia: KINDNESS INTERNATIONAL: HUMANE ZOO TRANSPORT. WARNING: LIVE WILD ANIMALS.  
** "Ohhhhh" **  
I said, "You're kidding. "  
Ares snapped his fingers. The back door of the truck unlatched. "Free ride west, punk. Stop complaining. And here's a little something for doing the job. "  
He slung a blue nylon backpack off his handlebars and tossed it to me.  
**"What's inside? What's inside?" Leo asked Calypso

"You would know if you let me read" she glared at him **  
Inside were fresh clothes for all of us, twenty bucks in cash, a pouch full of golden drachmas, and a bag of Double Stuf Oreos.  
** "Oreos" Amethyst said dreamily **  
I said, "I don't want your lousy—"  
"Thank you, Lord Ares," Grover interrupted, giving me his best red-alert warning look. "Thanks a lot. "  
**"Oh so it did work" Grover smiled "I was worried you didn't get the message, Perce" **  
I gritted my teeth. It was probably a deadly insult to refuse something from a god, but I didn't want anything that Ares had touched. Reluctantly, I slung the backpack over my shoulder. I knew my anger was being caused by the war god's presence, but I was still itching to punch him in the nose. He reminded me of every bully I'd ever faced: Nancy Bobofit, Clarisse, Smelly Gabe, sarcastic teachers—every jerk who'd called me stupid in school or laughed at me when I'd gotten expelled.  
** "You're not stupid" Everyone told him

"I thought I was a kelp head" Percy muttered

"Yeah you are but you're not stupid" Thalia told him

"Thanks guys" Percy told them **  
I looked back at the diner, which had only a couple of customers now. The waitress who'd served us dinner was watching nervously out the window, like she was afraid Ares might hurt us.**

"At least she looked afraid for you" Rachel said

 **She dragged the fry cook out from the kitchen to see. She said something to him. He nodded, held up a little disposable camera and snapped a picture of us.  
Great, I thought. Well make the papers again tomorrow.  
**"Oh aren't you just a famous demigod" Rachel teased

"He is pretty famous actually" Nico said "Monsters just can't stop saying how they want revenge on Percy Jackson"

Trina sighed and nodded "Exactly what most monsters tell me. Except they want to kill me instead as revenge on you"

Percy and Annabeth frowned they didn't like the idea of monsters chasing their daughter just because monsters wanted revenge on Percy. **  
I imagined the headline: TWELVE-YEAR-OLD OUTLAW BEATS UP DEFENSELESS BIKER.  
** "It could still be the other way around though" Hazel said **  
"You owe me one more thing," I told Ares, trying to keep my voice level. "You promised me information about my mother. "  
"You sure you can handle the news?" He kick-started his motorcycle. "She's not dead. "  
**"That's it?!" Amethyst cried out

"Pretty much" Percy answered her **  
The ground seemed to spin beneath me. "What do you mean?"  
"I mean she was taken away from the Minotaur before she could die. She was turned into a shower of gold, right? Thats metamorphosis. Not death. She's being kept. "**

Piper frowned this reminded her too much of when her dad was kidnapped. Jason sensed his girlfriend's mood, tightened his grip around her, and kissed her cheek.

 **"Kept. Why?"  
"You need to study war, punk. Hostages. You take somebody to control somebody else. "  
**"It always works though" Trina said

"Nope. Not with me" Percy denied

"Uh yeah it did dad" She explained "You want her back that's why you took the quest if she was never taken away as hostage you would never have taken the quest, retrieved the bolt and prevented a war. That's how you were controlled into taking the quest"

Percy didn't respond and Calypso continued reading. **  
"Nobody's controlling me. "  
He laughed. "Oh yeah? See you around, kid. "  
I balled up my fists. "You're pretty smug, Lord Ares, for a guy who runs from Cupid statues. "  
**"Oh no" Josh muttered under his breath **  
Behind his sunglasses, fire glowed. I felt a hot wind in my hair. "We'll meet again, Percy Jackson. Next time you're in a fight, watch your back. "  
He revved his Harley, then roared off down Delancy Street. **

"Hey maybe I should build myself a motorcycle!" Leo cried out and faced his friends

"NO!" **  
Annabeth said, "That was not smart, Percy. "  
** "I don't think he cares" Reyna said **  
"I don't care. "  
** "Hm I was right" **  
"You don't want a god as your enemy. Especially not that god. "  
** "Too late" Percy said rubbing the back of his neck **  
"Hey, guys," Grover said. "I hate to interrupt, but . . . "  
He pointed toward the diner. At the register, the last two customers were paying their check, two men in identical black coveralls, with a white logo on their backs that matched the one on the KINDNESS INTERNATIONAL truck.  
"If were taking the zoo express," Grover said, "we need to hurry. "  
**"You definitely should" Frank told them **  
I didn't like it, but we had no better option. Besides, I'd seen enough of Denver.  
We ran across the street and climbed in the back of the big rig, closing the doors behind us.  
The first thing that hit me was the smell. It was like the worlds biggest pan of kitty litter.  
**"Well it is a truck for zoo animals" Amethyst said **  
The trailer was dark inside until I uncapped Anaklusmos. The blade cast a faint bronze light over a very sad scene. Sitting in a row of filthy metal cages were three of the most pathetic zoo animals I'd ever beheld: a zebra, a male albino lion, and some weird antelope thing I didn't know the name for.  
** "How'd they become pathetic?" Piper asked

"Wait for it" Annabeth told her **  
Someone had thrown the lion a sack of turnips, which he obviously didn't want to eat. The zebra and the antelope had each gotten a Styrofoam tray of hamburger meat. The zebra's mane was matted with chewing gum, like somebody had been spitting on it in their spare time. The antelope had a stupid silver birthday balloon tied to one of his horns that read OVER THE HILL!  
** The people in the room who were not there on the truck were all grumbling about how that wasn't kindness to animals. **  
Apparently, nobody had wanted to get close enough to the lion to mess with him, but the poor thing was pacing around on soiled blankets, in a space way too small for him, panting from the stuffy heat of the trailer. He had flies buzzing around his pink eyes and his ribs showed through his white fur.  
** They all continued grumbling and some were even glaring at the book as if it was the one responsible for doing that to the animals. **  
"This is kindness?" Grover yelled. "Humane zoo transport?"  
** "Not at all"

"Far from it!"

"If that's kindness then i'm not a demigod" **  
He probably would've gone right back outside to beat up the truckers with his reed pipes, and I would've helped him, but just then the trucks engine roared to life, the trailer started shaking, and we were forced to sit down or fall down.  
** "Sit down is good" Frank muttered **  
We huddled in the corner on some mildewed feed sacks, trying to ignore the smell and the heat and the flies. Grover talked to the animals in a series of goat bleats, but they just stared at him sadly. Annabeth was in favor of breaking the cages and freeing them on the spot, but I pointed out it wouldn't do much good until the truck stopped moving. Besides, I had a feeling we might look a lot better to the lion than those turnips.  
** "You were smarter than Annabeth for a moment there!" Thalia laughed

"One of the really really rare moments" Percy replied smiling at Annabeth who rolled her eyes **  
I found a water jug and refilled their bowls, then used Anaklusmos to drag the mismatched food out of their cages. I gave the meat to the lion and the turnips to the zebra and the antelope.  
Grover calmed the antelope down, while Annabeth used her knife to cut the balloon off his horn. She wanted to cut the gum out of the zebras mane, too, but we decided that would be too risky with the truck bumping around. We told Grover to promise the animals we'd help them more in the morning, then we settled in for night.  
**"You guys did a great job" Piper smiled at them **  
Grover curled up on a turnip sack; Annabeth opened our bag of Double Stuf Oreos and nibbled on one half heartedly; I tried to cheer myself up by concentrating on the fact that we were halfway to Los Angeles. Halfway to our destination. It was only June fourteenth. The solstice wasn't until the twenty-first. We could make it in plenty of time.  
** "You just jinxed it" Alex told Percy who shrugged knowing that he did actually jinxed it. **  
On the other hand, I had no idea what to expect next. The gods kept toying with me. At least Hephaestus had the decency to be honest about it—he'd put up cameras and advertised me as entertainment. But even when the cameras aren't rolling, I had a feeling my quest was being watched. I was a source of amusement for the gods.  
** "We are all being watched especially on quests" Reyna said

"Wait" Leo said raising one of his hands as if he were inside a classroom

"Do you guys think we're being watched right now?" He asked

"Oh my gods"

"I've never thought of it before" Jessy said

"Probably" Annabeth said

"Do you guys think there are cameras here?" Rachel asked looking around the room

"Or maybe we're being watched up on Olympus without cameras" Piper said

"Maybe this house is packed with surveillance equipment" Will said

"Where are we even?" Hazel asked "In the past or in the future?" Hazel asked

"What?" Frank asked

"I mean it's either we were sent to their time" she said gesturing to the future people "or that they were sent to ours"

"I thought they were sent to our time" Percy said

"Well we never really got confirmation about it, now that I think about it" Thalia said

"I always thought we got sent to your time" Trina said

"Or maybe we got sent in another time" Leo added

"Okay guys!" Annabeth cried out "Let's stop. It will just drive us nuts. Let's just read the books, and hope that maybe the fates will give us some answers when we finish. Okay? I hate not knowing too but we don't have much of a choice"

Everyone nodded their heads and looked at Calypso, waiting for her to continue reading. **  
"Hey," Annabeth said, "I'm sorry for freaking out back at the water park, Percy. "  
** "It's okay" Percy told her **  
"That's okay. "  
"It's just. . . " She shuddered. "Spiders. "**

And so did the Trina, Amethyst and Annabeth.

Trina buried her face on her boyfriends neck as the spiders were mentioned. While Amethyst quickly went and sat next to Percy who wrapped his arms on both Amethyst and Annabeth **  
"Because of the Arachne story," I guessed. "She got turned into a spider for challenging your mom to a weaving contest, right?"  
** "You actually remembered that?" Grover asked

"I thought you guys said I wasn't stupid!"

"I'm not saying you are Perce. It's just as I remember correctly you were asleep when Chiron was discussing that"

"Oh I was?" Percy asked confused "Maybe. I must've encountered it when I 'tried' to study for Chiron's test"

"Maybe" **  
Annabeth nodded. "Arachne's children have been taking revenge on the children of Athena ever since. If there's a spider within a mile of me, it'll find me. I hate the creepy little things. Anyway, I owe you. "  
"We're a team, remember?" I said. "Besides, Grover did the fancy flying. "  
**"Yeah you did Grover"Annabeth said smiling **  
I thought he was asleep, but he mumbled from the corner, "I was pretty amazing, wasn't I?"  
** "Yep you were" Percy smiled **  
Annabeth and I laughed.  
She pulled apart an Oreo, handed me half. "In the Iris message . . . did Luke really say nothing?"  
**"He said a lot actually" Thalia said **  
I munched my cookie and thought about how to answer. The conversation via rainbow had bothered me all evening. "Luke said you and he go way back. He also said Grover wouldn't fail this time. Nobody would turn into a pine tree. "  
** Thalia grumbled **  
In the dim bronze light of the sword blade, it was hard to read their expressions.  
Grover let out a mournful bray.  
"I should've told you the truth from the beginning. " His voice trembled. "I thought if you knew what a failure I was, you wouldn't want me along. "  
**"You're not a failure, Grover" Percy said "You're the best Satyr"

Everyone agreed and Grover smiled at all of them. **  
"You were the satyr who tried to rescue Thalia, the daughter of Zeus. "  
He nodded glumly.  
"And the other two half-bloods Thalia befriended, the ones who got safely to camp . . . " I looked at Annabeth. "That was you and Luke, wasn't it?"  
**Annabeth and Thalia looked at each other for a while remembering those old times when they were out running for their lives. The three of them had all ran away from home, and together they ran for their lives looking for a brand new home. Though they knew that they found a family in each other. **  
She put down her Oreo, uneaten. "Like you said, Percy, a seven-year-old half-blood wouldn't have made it very far alone. Athena guided me toward help. Thalia was twelve. Luke was fourteen. They'd both run away from home, like me. They were happy to take me with them. They were . . . amazing monster-fighters, even without training. We traveled north from Virginia without any real plans, fending off monsters for about two weeks before Grover found us. "  
** Annabeth smiled those were the times when she never really had any real plans. But ever since then she always made sure to have a plan, and a back up plan, and of course a back up plan for the back up plan. Annabeth learned that it was always better to have a plan. She learned it the hard way that not having any real plans could cost someone's life. She had learned that when not having a plan had caused Thalia her life. **  
"I was supposed to escort Thalia to camp," he said, sniffling. "Only Thalia. I had strict orders from Chiron: don't do anything that would slow down the rescue. We knew Hades was after her, see, but I couldn't just leave Luke and Annabeth by themselves. I thought . . . I thought I could lead all three of them to safety. It was my fault the Kindly Ones caught up with us. I froze. I got scared on the way back to camp and took some wrong turns. If I'd just been a little quicker . . . "  
** "It was my destiny Grover. It wasn't your fault" Thalia told him

While Jason was thinking how hard Thalia's life was compared to him. Even though Jason was given away, at least he had a home in Camp Jupiter. While Thalia was always on the run, then just when she had found some friends and was close to finding a new home she was turned into a pine tree. **  
"Stop it," Annabeth said. "No one blames you. Thalia didn't blame you either. "  
** "Never have. Never will" Thalia said **  
"She sacrificed herself to save us," he said miserably, "Her death was my fault. The Council of Cloven Elders said so. "  
** "The Council of Cloven Elders were stupid" Percy said and Annabeth and Thalia agreed with him **  
"Because you wouldn't leave two other half-bloods behind?" I said. "That's not fair. "  
** "Definitely not!" Piper cried out **  
"Percy's right," Annabeth said. "I wouldn't be here today if it weren't for you, Grover. Neither would Luke. We don't care what the council says. "  
** "And we wouldn't be born either!" Amethyst gestured to her and Trina

"Oh my gods! You're right amy!" Her sister agreed

Even Josh agreed and said "I wouldn't have a girlfriend if it weren't for you"

"I wouldn't have a best friend if Annabeth didn't get to camp" Piper added

"I thought I was your best friend!" Leo whined

"Boy best friend. Annabeth's my girl best friend"

"I wouldn't have Annabeth and future children" Percy said "Grover you do realize that if it weren't for you most of us wouldn't be here right now"

"And our destinies would have happened differently" Rachel added "Percy might not have made it to camp or even if he did there would be no Annabeth to keep him out of trouble."

"and If you would've only brought me ro camp I might've been the child of the prophecy. It would have happened sooner and we might have lost if I was the child of the prophecy. Grover you helped saved the world in more ways than you imagine!" Thalia said smiling at him

"In short don't you ever blame yourself again Grover" Annabeth told him

Grover was silent for a while then smiled at everyone of them. He was thinking what did he do to deserve all these amazing people around him.

After a few minutes of silence, Calypso resumed reading the chapter. **  
Grover kept sniffling in the dark. "It's just my luck. I'm the lamest satyr ever, and I find the two most powerful half-bloods of the century, Thalia and Percy. "  
** "That's because you are one powerful Satyr as well" Annabeth said **  
"You're not lame," Annabeth insisted. "You've got more courage than any satyr I've ever met. Name one other who would dare go to the Underworld. I bet Percy is really glad you're here right now. "  
She kicked me in the shin.  
"Yeah," I said, which I would've done even without the kick. **

"Sorry" Annabeth muttered

"Now I know where Trina gets it from" Nick grumbled glaring at Trina

"Oh shut up, Nick before I kick you again"

"See!" Nick exclaimed

 **"It's not luck that you found Thalia and me, Grover. You've got the biggest heart of any satyr ever. You're a natural searcher. That's why you'll be the one who finds Pan. "  
** "And that's exactly what you did" Nico said remembering when they had seen Pan **  
I heard a deep, satisfied sigh. I waited for Grover to say something, but his breathing only got heavier. When the sound turned to snoring, I realized he'd fallen sleep.  
** Grover blushed but didn't say anything **  
"How does he do that?" I marveled.  
** "How does he eat so much too?" Hazel questioned **  
"I don't know," Annabeth said.**

"That's still the same answer to your question, Hazel" Annabeth laughed

 **"But that was really a nice thing you told him. "  
"I meant it. "  
We rode in silence for a few miles, bumping around on the feed sacks. The zebra munched a turnip. The lion licked the last of the hamburger meat off his lips and looked at me hopefully.  
**"Maybe he wants to eat you too!" Jessy said

"I don't like the sound of that" Percy said **  
Annabeth rubbed her necklace like she was thinking deep, strategic thoughts.  
** "I was actually" **  
"That pine-tree bead," I said. "Is that from your first year?"  
She looked. She hadn't realized what she was doing.  
**Even the Annabeth in the room had decided to look on her bead necklace and found the one from her first summer. **  
"Yeah," she said. "Every August, the counselors pick the most important event of the summer, and they paint it on that year's beads. I've got Thalia's pine tree, a Greek trireme on fire, a centaur in a prom dress—now that was a weird summer. . . . "  
** "Centaur in a prom dress?" Alex asked

"Yep"

"How?"

"Even I don't know" Annabeth answered

 **"And the college ring is your fathers?"  
** Again, Annabeth looked at her necklace and found her fathers college ring. **  
"Thats none of your—" She stopped herself. "Yeah. Yeah, it is. "  
"You don't have to tell first  
"No . . . its okay. " She took a shaky breath. "My dad sent it to me folded up in a letter, two summers ago. The ring was, like, his main keepsake from Athena. He wouldn't have gotten through his doctoral program at Harvard without her. . . . That's a long story. Anyway, he said he wanted me to have it. He apologized for being a jerk, said he loved me and missed me. He wanted me to come home and live with him. "  
**"That sounds nice" Piper smiled at Annabeth **  
"That doesn't sound so bad. "  
** "Sort of the same meaning with what Piper just said" Rachel told Percy **  
"Yeah, well. . . the problem was, I believed him. I tried to go home for that school year, but my stepmom was the same as ever. She didn't want her kids put in danger by living with a freak. Monsters attacked. We argued. Monsters attacked. We argued. I didn't even make it through winter break. I called Chiron and came right back to Camp Half-Blood. "  
** Trina and Amethyst looked at each other, that was the opposite of what they saw growing up. They grew up to seeing Annabeth and her stepmother with a great relationship. They couldn't even imagine that they used to argue a lot back when Annabeth was younger. **  
"You think you'll ever try living with your dad again?"  
** "Yes" Trina and Amethyst said **  
She wouldn't meet my eyes. "Please. I'm not into self-inflicted pain. "  
** "Who is?" Rachel asked

"A masochist?" Thalia answered her **  
"You shouldn't give up," I told her. "You should write him a letter or something. "  
"Thanks for the advice," she said coldly, "but my father's made his choice about who he wants to live with. "  
We passed another few miles of silence.  
**"Awkward" Leo muttered smirking **  
"So if the gods fight," I said, "will things line up the way they did with the Trojan War?**

"What?" Frank asked

 **Will it be Athena versus Poseidon?"  
** "Probably" Will said **  
She put her head against the backpack Ares had given us, and closed her eyes. "I don't know what my mom will do. I just know I'll fight next to you. "  
** At this point three girls (Amethyst, Trina and Jess) squealed in delight

"That is so sweet" Jessy squealed **  
"Why?"  
"Because you're my friend, Seaweed Brain. Any more stupid questions?"  
**"More than a friend now actually" Trina told them

"Yeah" Annabeth and Percy agreed looking at each other foundly **  
I couldn't think of an answer for that. Fortunately I didn't have to. Annabeth was asleep.  
I had trouble following her example, with Grover snoring and an albino lion staring hungrily at me, but eventually I closed my eyes.  
My nightmare started out as something I'd dreamed a million times before: I was being forced to take a standardized test while wearing a straitjacket. **

"Seriously?" Alex asked

"Yeah seriously. I have that dream a lot" Percy answered

"I get that dream too sometimes" Leo admitted

 **All the other kids were going out to recess, and the teacher kept saying, Come on, Percy. You're not stupid, are you? Pick up your pencil.  
** "Yes Percy. You're not stupid" Hazel told him **  
Then the dream strayed from the usual.  
** "Oh no" Piper muttered **  
I looked over at the next desk and saw a girl sitting there, also wearing a straitjacket. She was my age, with unruly black, punk-style hair,**

"Thalia?" Jason asked

 **dark eyeliner**

"That's definitely you Thalia" Jason told his sister

"But Percy has never met me yet at that time" Thalia said

 **around her stormy green eyes,**

"I don't have green eyes" Thalia grumbled to Percy

"Sorry. But that's definitely you Thalia" Percy said

 **and freckles across her nose. Somehow, I knew who she was. She was Thalia, daughter of Zeus.  
** "See?" **  
She struggled against the straitjacket, glared at me in frustration, and snapped, Well, Seaweed Brain? One of us has to get out of here.  
** "Definitely Thalia" Everyone agreed laughing

"Whatever" The said girl said waving them off **  
She's right, my dream-self thought. I'm going back to that cavern.**

"Cavern?" Will asked

 **I'm going to give Hades a piece of my mind.  
The straitjacket melted off me. I fell through the classroom floor. The teachers voice changed until it was cold and evil, echoing from the depths of a great chasm.  
**"That's probably the cavern" Will said **  
Percy Jackson, it said. Yes, the exchange went well, I see.  
** "What exchange?" Nico asked

But nobody answered **  
I was back in the dark cavern, spirits of the dead drifting around me.**

"Oh that cavern" Will said

 **Unseen in the pit, the monstrous thing was speaking, but this time it wasn't addressing me. The numbing power of its voice seemed directed somewhere else.  
And he suspects nothing? it asked.  
**"Percy suspects nothing?" Piper asked "Who are those two talking" **  
Another voice, one I almost recognized, answered at my shoulder. Nothing, my lord. He is as ignorant as the rest.  
** "So you know the other person talking" Jason asked

"Yeah but I didn't realize it sooner" Percy answered

"Who is it?" Reyna asked

"You'll get to find out later" **  
I looked over, but no one was there. The speaker was invisible.  
Deception upon deception, the thing in the pit mused aloud. Excellent.  
Truly, my lord, said the voice next to me, you are well-named the Crooked One. **

"'Crooked one. Is that Hades?" Leo asked

"No" Nico answered

"The crooked one is someone else. Someone pure evil" Will answered

 **But was it really necessary? I could have brought you what I stole directly —  
You? the monster said in scorn. You have already shown your limits. You would have failed me completely had I not intervened.  
But, my lord—  
Peace, little servant. Our six months have bought us much. Zeus**' **anger has grown. Poseidon has played his most desperate card. Now we shall use it against him. Shortly you shall have the reward you wish, and your revenge. As soon as both items are delivered into my hands . . . but wait. He is here.  
** "Yeah. So glad you noticed" Percy said sarcastically **  
What? The invisible servant suddenly sounded tense. You summoned him, my lord?  
No. The full force of the monsters attention was now pouring over me, freezing me in place. Blast his father's blood—he is too changeable, too unpredictable. **

"They both are" Josh said gesturing to Trina and Percy

 **The boy brought himself hither.  
** "How I did that I don't know" Percy said when he saw Leo about to open his mouth to ask that question **  
Impossible! the servant cried.**

"Nothings impossible with Percy" Annabeth grumbled **  
For a weakling such as you, perhaps, the voice snarled.**

"Ouch" Leo said

"Did he just compliment me?" Percy asked

"In a way yes" Annabeth answered

 **Then it's cold power turned back on me. So . . . you wish to dream of your quest, young half-blood? Then I will oblige.  
The scene changed.  
I was standing in a vast throne room with black marble walls and bronze floors. The empty, horrid throne was made from human bones fused together. **

Nico leaned forward at the mention of his father's throne room.

 **Standing at the foot of the dais was my mother, frozen in shimmering golden light, her arms outstretched.  
I tried to step toward her, but my legs wouldn't move. I reached for her, only to realize that my hands were withering to bones. Grinning skeletons in Greek armor crowded around me, draping me with silk robes, wreathing my head with laurels that smoked with Chimera poison, burning into my scalp.  
The evil voice began to laugh. Hail, the conquering hero!  
I woke with a start.  
Grover was shaking my shoulder. "The trucks stopped," he said. "We think they're coming to check on the animals. "  
**"Oh no" Hazel said **  
"Hide!" Annabeth hissed.  
She had it easy. She just put on her magic cap and disappeared. Grover and I had to dive behind feed sacks and hope we looked like turnips.  
**"You don't" Leo said laughing **  
The trailer doors creaked open. Sunlight and heat poured in.  
"Man!" one of the truckers said, waving his hand in front of his ugly nose. "I wish I hauled appliances. " **

"I bet the animals could say the same thing to them" Rachel grumbled

"That they hauled appliances instead?" Frank asked

"No. That they had better truck drivers"

"Oh"

 **He climbed inside and poured some water from a jug into the animals dishes.  
"You hot, big boy?" he asked the lion, then splashed the rest of the bucket right in the lions face.  
**Everyone grumbled in annoyance **  
The lion roared in indignation.  
"Yeah, yeah, yeah," the man said.  
Next to me, under the turnip sacks, Grover tensed. For a peace-loving herbivore, he looked downright murderous.  
**It was still how Grover looked at the moment that they were reading the book. **  
The trucker threw the antelope a squashed-looking Happy Meal bag. He smirked at the zebra. "How ya doin, Stripes? Least we'll be getting rid of you this stop. You like magic shows? You're gonna love this one. They're gonna saw you in half!"  
** "WHAT?!" Everyone cried out and kept muttering curses directed towards the truck driver. It took Calypso a few minutes before she could continue reading. **  
The zebra, wild-eyed with fear, looked straight at me.  
There was no sound, but as clear as day, I heard it say: Free me, lord. Please.  
**"What? You could talk to a Zebra?" Leo asked and everyone who didn't know that Percy can talk to horses were stunned as well.

"I don't get it. I know you can talk to horses but is a Zebra even a horse?" Hazel asked

"Don't ask me. I don't know either! But I can talk to them and they can talk to me" Percy said

"How is that even possible?" Reyna asked

"I don't know!"

"How can you even talk to horses?!"

"Because POSEIDON!"

"Last I heard horses can't swim"

"Seahorses can"

"That's not the point!"

"My dad made the horses okay! I can talk to fish, and horses, pegasus' and zebra's! Because POSEIDON!" Percy cried out

"Can you two talk to horses too?" Calypso asked Trina and Amethyst who both nodded

"Do Zebra's talk to you as well?" Annabeth asked

"Never tried yet" Trina answered

"The Zebra's at the Zoo are very friendly" Amethyst said

"That is so weird" Thalia told them

"No it's not"Percy, Trina and Amethyst said in unison

"You talk to Zebra's!"

"Wait. Can you talk to Frank when he's in Zebra form?" Leo asked

"Probably"

Everyone looked at Frank expectedly

"Nope. Not doing it" Frank shook his head

"Come on Frank!" almost everybody whined

"No"

"But Frank!"

It was a good thing that Calypso had decided to start reading. **  
I was too stunned to react.  
There was a loud knock, knock, knock on the side of the trailer.  
The trucker inside with us yelled, "What do you want, Eddie?"  
A voice outside—it must've been Eddies—shouted back, "Maurice? What'd ya say?"  
"What are you banging for?"  
Knock, knock, knock.  
Outside, Eddie yelled, "What banging?"  
Our guy Maurice rolled his eyes and went back outside, cursing at Eddie for being an idiot.  
**"They're both idiots!" Grover shouted **  
A second later, Annabeth appeared next to me. She must've done the banging to get Maurice out of the trailer. She said, "This transport business can't be legal. "  
** "No kidding" Thalia scoffed **  
"No kidding," Grover said. He paused, as if listening. "The lion says these guys are animal smugglers!"  
That's right, the zebras voice said in my mind.  
**"Zebra whisperer" Leo snickered

"Shut up, Valdez" **  
"We've got to free them!" Grover said. He and Annabeth both looked at me, waiting for my lead.  
** "Wow Annabeth. You actually waited for Percy's lead" Thalia told her friend **  
I'd heard the zebra talk, but not the lion. Why? Maybe it was another learning disability . . . I could only understand zebras?**

"Zebra whisperer!" Leo said again but louder this time

 **Then I thought: horses. What had Annabeth said about Poseidon creating horses? Was a zebra close enough to a horse? Was that why I could understand it?  
** "Is a Zebra really close to a horse?" Rachel asked Annabeth

"Zebras are part of the Horse Family if I'm not mistaken" Annabeth replied **  
The zebra said, Open my cage, lord. Please. I'll be fine after that.  
Outside, Eddie and Maurice were still yelling at each other, but I knew they'd be coming inside to torment the animals again any minute. I grabbed Riptide and slashed the lock off the zebras cage.  
The zebra burst out. It turned to me and bowed. Thank you, lord.  
**"He's a respectful Zebra" Hazel observed

"A thankful one too" Percy added **  
Grover held up his hands and said something to the zebra in goat talk, like a blessing.  
Just as Maurice was poking his head back inside to check out the noise, the zebra leaped over him and into the street. There was yelling and screaming and cars honking. We rushed to the doors of the trailer in time to see the zebra galloping down a wide boulevard lined with hotels and casinos and neon signs. We'd just released a zebra in Las Vegas.  
**"Oh so that's the story behind the chapter title" Jason said **  
Maurice and Eddie ran after it, with a few policemen running after them, shouting, "Hey! You need a permit for that!"  
"Now would be a good time to leave," Annabeth said.  
"The other animals first," Grover said.  
I cut the locks with my sword. Grover raised his hands and spoke the same goat-blessing hed used for the zebra.  
"Good luck," I told the animals. The antelope and the lion burst out of their cages and went off together into the streets.  
Some tourists screamed. Most just backed off and took pictures, probably thinking it was some kind of stunt by one of the casinos.  
**"Probably. Because of the mist" Annabeth said **  
"Will the animals be okay?" I asked Grover. "I mean, the desert and all—"  
"Don't worry," he said. "I placed a satyrs sanctuary on them. "  
"Meaning?"  
"Meaning they'll reach the wild safely," he said. "They'll find water, food, shade, whatever they need until they find a safe place to live. "  
"Why can't you place a blessing like that on us?" I asked.  
"It only works on wild animals. "  
"So it would only affect Percy," Annabeth reasoned.  
**Everyone burst out laughing. Especially Percy's future daughters, who were clutching their stomachs and wiping tears from their eyes as they laughed their butts off. **  
"Hey!" I protested.  
"Kidding," she said. "Come on. Let's get out of this filthy truck. "  
We stumbled out into the desert afternoon. It was a hundred and ten degrees, easy, and we must've looked like deep-fried vagrants, but everybody was too interested in the wild animals to pay us much attention.  
**"That's good" Piper said **  
We passed the Monte Carlo and the MGM. We passed pyramids, a pirate ship, and the Statue of Liberty, which was a pretty small replica, but still made me homesick.  
I wasn't sure what we were looking for. Maybe just a place to get out of the heat for a few minutes, find a sandwich and a glass of lemonade, make a new plan for getting west.  
We must have taken a wrong turn, because we found ourselves at a dead end, standing in front of the Lotus Hotel and Casino. **

Nico froze at the mention of the Lotus Hotel and Casino. This made him miss his sister Bianca even more.

 **The entrance was a huge neon flower, the petals lighting up and blinking. No one was going in or out, but the glittering chrome doors were open, spilling out air-conditioning that smelled like flowers—lotus blossom, maybe. I'd never smelled one, so I wasn't sure.  
The doorman smiled at us. "Hey, kids. You look tired. You want to come in and sit down?"  
I'd learned to be suspicious, the last week or so. I figured anybody might be a monster or a god. You just couldn't tell. But this guy was normal. One look at him, and I could see. Besides, I was so relieved to hear somebody who sounded sympathetic that I nodded and said we'd love to come in. Inside, we took one look around, and Grover said, "Whoa."  
**Calypso frowned she'd heard about the Lotus Hotel and Casino from one of her visitors when she was still in her island. **  
The whole lobby was a giant game room. And I'm not talking about cheesy old Pac-Man games or slot machines. There was an indoor waterslide snaking around the glass elevator, which went straight up at least forty floors. There was a climbing wall on the side of one building, and an indoor bungee-jumping bridge. There were virtual-reality suits with working laser guns. And hundreds of video games, each one the size of a widescreen TV. Basically, you name it, this place had it. There were a few other kids playing, but not that many. No waiting for any of the games. There were waitresses and snack bars all around, serving every kind of food you can imagine.  
** "THAT'S AWESOME! LET'S GO THERE!" Leo Shouted

"Just read, Calypso" Annabeth told her **  
"Hey!" a bellhop said. At least I guessed he was a bellhop. He wore a white-and-yellow Hawaiian shirt with lotus designs, shorts, and flip-flops. "Welcome to the Lotus Casino. Here's your room key. "  
** "What?" Reyna asked "You haven't even checked in yet" **  
I stammered, "Um, but. . . "  
"No, no," he said, laughing. "The bills taken care of. No extra charges, no tips. Just go on up to the top floor, room 4001. If you need anything, like extra bubbles for the hot tub, or skeet targets for the shooting range, or whatever, just call the front desk. Here are your Lotus Cash cards. They work in the restaurants and on all the games and rides."**

"AWESOME!" **  
He handed us each a green plastic credit card.  
I knew there must be some mistake. Obviously he thought we were some millionaires kids. But I took the card and said, "How much is on here?"  
His eyebrows knit together. "What do you mean?"  
"I mean, when does it run out of cash?"  
He laughed. "Oh, you're making a joke. Hey, thats cool. Enjoy your stay. "  
**"You mean it doesn't run out of cash?" Leo asked

"Nope"

"Let's go there!"  
"Nope"

"Why not?" he whined

"You'll see" **  
We took the elevator upstairs and checked out our room. It was a suite with three separate bedrooms and a bar stocked with candy, sodas, and chips. A hotline to room service. Fluffy towels and water beds with feather pillows. A big-screen television with satellite and high-speed Internet. The balcony had its own hot tub, and sure enough, there was a skeet-shooting machine and a shotgun, so you could launch clay pigeons right out over the Las Vegas skyline and plug them with your gun. I didn't see how that could be legal, but I thought it was pretty cool. The view over the Strip and the desert was amazing, though I doubted we'd ever find time to look at the view with a room like this.**

Everyone except (Grover, Percy, Annabeth, and Nico were in awe of the room **  
"Oh, goodness," Annabeth said. "This place is . . . "  
"Sweet," Grover said. "Absolutely sweet. "  
There were clothes in the closet, and they fit me. I frowned, thinking that this was a little strange.  
I threw Aress backpack in the trash can. Wouldn't need that anymore. When we leave, I could just charge a new one at the hotel store.  
**'I'm glad we were able to leave that place' Percy thought to himself **  
I took a shower, which felt awesome after a week of grimy travel. I changed clothes, ate a bag of chips, drank three Cokes, and came out feeling better than I had in a long time. In the back of my mind, some small problem kept nagging me. I'd had a dream or something . . . I needed to talk to my friends. But I was sure it could wait.  
** "Oh no" Reyna muttered she had a bad feeling about this place **  
I came out of the bedroom and found that Annabeth and Grover had also showered and changed clothes. Grover was eating potato chips to his heart's content, while Annabeth cranked up the National Geographic Channel.  
** "Seriously Annabeth?!" Rachel said

"It's interesting" the said girl replied **  
"All those stations," I told her, "and you turn on National Geographic. Are you insane?"  
"It's interesting. "  
**"And she still has the same response a few years later" Rachel muttered **  
"I feel good," Grover said. "I love this place. "  
** "Me too" Leo muttered dreamily **  
Without him even realizing it, the wings sprouted out of his shoes and lifted him a foot off the ground, then back down again.  
"So what now?" Annabeth asked. "Sleep?"  
Grover and I looked at each other and grinned. We both held up our green plastic Lotus Cash cards.  
"Play time," I said.  
I couldn't remember the last time I had so much fun. I came from a relatively poor family. Our idea of a splurge was eating out at Burger King and renting a video. A five-star Vegas hotel? Forget it.  
**Trina and Amethyst gaped at the book

Their dad had taken them to a five-star hotel for a family vacation a couple of times. Trina was thinking that maybe their dad had made so much effort to give them the life that he had dreamed of as a kid. He grew up in a relative poor family and did his best to not let his legacy have the same experience.

"What are you two thinking?" Annabeth asked them

"Nothing" Trina said smiling at them "We're just lucky to have the life we have and to have the two of you as our parents" **  
I bungee-jumped the lobby five or six times, did the waterslide, snowboarded the artificial ski slope, and played virtual-reality laser tag and FBI sharpshooter. I saw Grover a few times, going from game to game. He really liked the reverse hunter thing—where the deer go out and shoot the rednecks. I saw Annabeth playing trivia games and other brainiac stuff. They had this huge 3-D sim game where you build your own city, and you could actually see the holographic buildings rise on the display board. I didn't think much of it, but Annabeth loved it.**

Annabeth smiled remembering the buildings that she had made in that game. **  
I'm not sure when I first realized something was wrong.  
Probably, it was when I noticed the guy standing next to me at VR sharpshooters. He was about thirteen, I guess, but his clothes were weird. I thought he was some Elvis impersonators son. He wore bell-bottom jeans and a red T-shirt with black piping, and his hair was permed and gelled like a New Jersey girls on homecoming night.  
**"I know that guy!" Nico said looking at Percy

"How?" Frank asked "You were at that Casino too?"

"Yeah. With my sister" Nico said

"Hazel?" Leo asked

"No. Bianca"

At this point Will gave Calypso a look that told her to start reading ASAP. **  
We played a game of sharpshooters together and he said, "Groovy, man. Been here two weeks, and the games keep getting better and better. "  
Groovy?  
**"Who still says Groovy?" Piper asked **  
Later, while we were talking, I said something was "sick," and he looked at me kind of startled, as if he'd never heard the word used that way before.  
He said his name was Darrin, but as soon as I started asking him questions he got bored with me and started to go back to the computer screen.  
I said, "Hey, Darrin?"  
"What?"  
"What year is it?"  
He frowned at me. "In the game?"  
"No. In real life. "  
He had to think about it. "1977. "  
**"WHAT?!" **  
"No," I said, getting a little scared. "Really. "  
"Hey, man. Bad vibes. I got a game happening. "  
After that he totally ignored me.  
I started talking to people, and I found it wasn't easy. They were glued to the TV screen, or the video game, or their food, or whatever. I found a guy who told me it was 1985. Another guy told me it was 1993. They all claimed they hadn't been in here very long, a few days, a few weeks at most. They didn't really know and they didn't care.  
**Everyone frowned

"You know what guys. I think i'm good. I don't want to go there anymore" Leo said frowning **  
Then it occurred to me: how long had I been here? It seemed like only a couple of hours, but was it?  
I tried to remember why we were here. We were going to Los Angeles. We were supposed to find the entrance to the Underworld. My mother . . . for a scary second, I had trouble remembering her name. Sally. Sally Jackson. I had to find her. I had to stop Hades from causing World War III.  
I found Annabeth still building her city. **

"Seriously Annabeth?" Thalia asked

"I got to build my own city!" **  
"Come on," I told her. "We've got to get out of here. "  
No response.  
I shook her. "Annabeth?"  
She looked up, annoyed. "What?  
"We need to leave. "  
"Leave? What are you talking about? I've just got the towers—"  
"This place is a trap. "  
She didn't respond until I shook her again. "What?"  
"Listen. The Underworld. Our quest!"  
"Oh, come on, Percy. Just a few more minutes. "  
**"ANNABETH!"

"Oh shut up guys!" **  
"Annabeth, there are people here from 1977. Kids who have never aged. You check in, and you stay forever. "  
"So?" she asked. "Can you imagine a better place?"  
**Everyone looked at Annabeth like she's lost her mind

"I was living my dream in that game. Give me a break I was twelve!" **  
I grabbed her wrist and yanked her away from the game.  
"Hey!" She screamed and hit me, but nobody else even bothered looking at us. They were too busy.  
I made her look directly in my eyes. I said, "Spiders. Large, hairy spiders. "  
**"Nice Percy!" Leo laughed "That'll get her attention"

Everyone couldn't help but laugh as well while Annabeth rolled her eyes and placed her head on Percy's shoulders. **  
That jarred her. Her vision cleared. "Oh my gods," she said. "How long have we—"  
"I don't know, but we've got to find Grover. "  
We went searching, and found him still playing Virtual Deer Hunter.  
"Grover!" we both shouted.  
He said, "Die, human! Die, silly polluting nasty person!"**

A few people scooted away from Grover as if he was going to shoot them with a gun. **  
"Grover!"  
He turned the plastic gun on me and started clicking, as if I were just another image from the screen.  
**More people scooted away from him except for Percy who patted his back and laughed at Grover. **  
I looked at Annabeth, and together we took Grover by the arms and dragged him away. His flying shoes sprang to life and started tugging his legs in the other direction as he shouted, "No! I just got to a new level! No!"  
The Lotus bellhop hurried up to us. "Well, now, are you ready for your platinum cards?"  
"We're leaving," I told him.  
"Such a shame," he said, and I got the feeling that he really meant it, that we'd be breaking his heart if we went. "We just added an entire new floor full of games for platinum-card members. "  
**"Tempting but nah" Leo said **  
He held out the cards, and I wanted one. I knew that if I took one, I'd never leave. I'd stay here, happy forever, playing games forever, and soon I'd forget my mom, and my quest, and maybe even my own name. I'd be playing virtual rifleman with groovy Disco Darrin forever.  
Grover reached for the card, but Annabeth yanked back his arm and said, "No, thanks. "  
We walked toward the door, and as we did, the smell of the food and the sounds of the games seemed to get more and more inviting. I thought about our room upstairs. We could just stay the night, sleep in a real bed for once. . . .  
**Everybody shook their heads. If they didn't leave now, they'd be stuck in that place forever" **  
Then we burst through the doors of the Lotus Casino and ran down the sidewalk. It felt like afternoon, about the same time of day we'd gone into the casino, but something was wrong. The weather had completely changed. It was stormy, with heat lightning flashing out in the desert.  
** "Oh no" a few muttered **  
Ares backpack was slung over my shoulder, which was odd, because I was sure I had thrown it in the trash can in room 4001, but at the moment I had other problems to worry about.  
I ran to the nearest newspaper stand and read the year first. Thank the gods, it was the same year it had been when we went in. Then I noticed the date: June twentieth.  
**A few had their mouths wide open 'how could that happen?' was everyone's thoughts **  
We had been in the Lotus Casino for five days.  
We had only one day left until the summer solstice. One day to complete our quest.  
**"Dun dun dun" Leo said in a dramatic voice

"LEO!" Piper cried out

"That's the end of the chapter" Calypso said passing the book to Leo and stretching. ****

**HELLO EVERYONE! I HOPE YOU LIKE THIS CHAPTER! TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK OF THIS CHAPTER IN A REVIEW! XOXO CHINFEV1203**


	25. Chapter 17: Leo

**17\. WE SHOP FOR WATERBEDS** Leo read ****

 **It was Annabeth's idea.**

"To shop for waterbeds?" Leo asked

"Just read Leo" she told him

"Things are always Annabeth's idea though" Thalia said

"No. Sometimes it's Percy's risk taker ideas" Annabeth argued **  
She loaded us into the back of a Vegas taxi as if we actually had money, and told the driver, "Los Angeles, please. "  
** "From Vegas? Seriously?" Piper commented **  
The cabbie chewed his cigar and sized us up. "That's three hundred miles. For that, you gotta pay up front. "  
** "But you have no money" Amethyst said **  
"You accept casino debit cards?" Annabeth asked.  
** "Ohhhhh" **  
He shrugged. "Some of em. Same as credit cards. I gotta swipe em through first. "  
Annabeth handed him her green Lotus Cash card.  
He looked at it skeptically.  
"Swipe it," Annabeth invited.  
He did.  
His meter machine started rattling. The lights flashed. Finally an infinity symbol came up next to the dollar sign.  
**"Please tell me you still have it! Tell me! Tell me! Tell me!" Leo pleaded

"No"

"No you won't tell me or no you don't have it?"

"No Leo I don't have it anymore"

"Such a waste" he whined **  
The cigar fell out of the drivers mouth. He looked back at us, his eyes wide. "Where to in Los Angeles. . . uh, Your Highness?"  
** "The girl with the princess curls got a princess treatment" Thalia said **  
"The Santa Monica Pier. " Annabeth sat up a little straighter. I could tell she liked the "Your Highness" thing. "Get us there fast, and you can keep the change."  
** "Why?!" Leo cried **  
Maybe she shouldn't have told him that. The cabs speedometer never dipped below ninety-five the whole way through the Mojave Desert.  
On the road, we had plenty of time to talk. I told Annabeth and Grover about my latest dream, but the details got sketchier the more I tried to remember them. The Lotus Casino seemed to have short-circuited my memory. I couldn't recall what the invisible servants voice had sounded like, though I was sure it was somebody I knew. The servant had called the monster in the pit something other than "my lord" . . . some special name or title. . . .  
**"Maybe that's why you found the Lotus Casino" Reyna said

"What?"

"You reached a stop in vegas just when you had that dream about the servant and his master. Maybe in some way the master manipulated something to let you reach the casino so that you'd forget some of the details of your dream" Jason said in realization

"That could be possible" Percy agreed **  
"The Silent One?" Annabeth suggested. "The Rich One? Both of those are nicknames for Hades. "  
** "That's not it" Hazel said **  
"Maybe . . . " I said, though neither sounded quite right.  
"That throne room sounds like Hades," Grover said. "That's the way it's usually described. "  
I shook my head. "Something's wrong. The throne room wasn't the main part of the dream. And that voice from the pit . . . I don't know. It just didn't feel like a god's voice. "  
**'Because it wasn't a gods voice' Percy and Annabeth thought **  
Annabeths eyes widened.  
"What?" I asked.  
"Oh . . . nothing. I was just—No, it has to be Hades. Maybe he sent this thief, this invisible person, to get the master bolt, and something went wrong—"  
**"You were already realizing who it was. But you were denying it" Rachel said and Annabeth nodded **  
"Like what?"  
"I—I dont know," she said. "But if he stole Zeus's symbol of power from Olympus, and the gods were hunting him, I mean, a lot of things could go wrong. So this thief had to hide the bolt, or he lost it somehow. Anyway, he failed to bring it to Hades. That's what the voice said in your dream, right? The guy failed. That would explain what the Furies were searching for when they came after us on the bus. Maybe they thought we had retrieved the bolt. "  
**"But why would you still go on a quest if you've already retrieved the bolt?" Calypso asked **  
I wasn't sure what was wrong with her. She looked pale.  
** Annabeth frowned **  
"But if I'd already retrieved the bolt," I said, "why would I be traveling to the Underworld?"  
** "Yeah. Why?" Nick asked **  
"To threaten Hades," Grover suggested. "To bribe or blackmail him into getting your mom back. "  
I whistled. "You have evil thoughts for a goat. "  
"Why, thank you. "  
"But the thing in the pit said it was waiting for two items," I said. "If the master bolt is one, what's the other?"  
**Nico was deep in thought he knew what item it was. After that incident his father had become really protective with his helm of darkness. Well…. That's what the ghost have told Nico. **  
Grover shook his head, clearly mystified.  
Annabeth was looking at me as if she knew my next question, and was silently willing me not to ask it.  
"You have an idea what might be in that pit, don't you?" I asked her. "I mean, if it isnt Hades?"  
"Percy . . . let's not talk about it. Because if it isn't Hades . . . No. It has to be Hades. "  
**"Sadly it wasn't Hades" Nico whispered but a few people heard him. **  
Wasteland rolled by. We passed a sign that said CALIFORNIA STATE LINE, 12 MILES.  
I got the feeling I was missing one simple, critical piece of information. It was like when I stared at a common word I should know, but I couldn't make sense of it because one or two letters were floating around. The more I thought about my quest, the more I was sure that confronting Hades wasn't the real answer. There was something else going on, something even more dangerous. **

"Your thoughts are making me scared and sad" Amethyst said "Can I go to sleep again?"

"Nooooo. You're hearing his thoughts along with us" Jessy told her which made the girl frown **  
The problem was: we were hurtling toward the Underworld at ninety-five miles an hour, betting that Hades had the master bolt. If we got there and found out we were wrong, we wouldn't have time to correct ourselves. The solstice deadline would pass and war would begin.  
** "Positive thoughts. Think happy thoughts. Gummy bears and chocolates" Amy whispered to herself over and over

"Don't mind her. That's just her keep calm mantra" Trina said

"She does that a lot?" Percy asked

"Yeah whenever she feels stressed out" Trina answered

"It always works though. I try it sometimes" Jessy said smiling at Amy who had her eyes closed and was still whispering to herself **  
"The answer is in the Underworld," Annabeth assured me. "You saw spirits of the dead, Percy. There's only one place that could be. We're doing the right thing. "  
** "How do we know when we're doing the right thing?" Hazel asked

"What?"

"A right thing for you could be different for another person so how do we really know when we are doing the right thing?"

"Sort of like when we do a deviant act" Annabeth started "What may be deviant for me could not be deviant for Piper. And what can be deviant for mortals may not be for demigods. It always depends on who is doing the act, in what situation they are doing it, and who is seeing them doing it"

"What?" A few people asked not following what Hazel and Annabeth were saying

"The right thing and the wrong thing always varies. To me it could be the right thing, but to those watching me I could not be doing the right thing based on their perspective. And sometimes people may think its the right thing but it's wrong for the situation"

"I still don't get it" Will said and a few nodded

"Why are we talking about this again?" Leo asked

"I don't know" Percy said "Why are we talking about this again?"

"I think Hazel started it" Grover said

Hazel rolled her eyes

"Sort of like when you think you're doing the best for a person but they think you're doing the opposite" Alex said

"Exactly!" Annabeth exclaimed "It always varies depending on the person, the audience and the situation"

"Audience?" Nick asked

"Are we talking films now?" Percy asked

After another explanation from Annabeth about the relativity of deviance and a few people still not getting it or didn't pay attention to what she was saying, she decided to just let Leo continue reading. **  
She tried to boost our morale by suggesting clever strategies for getting into the Land of the Dead, but my heart wasn't in it. There were just too many unknown factors.**

"Factors? Like a math test?" Frank asked

"Ugh I hate math! Let's not mention it please" Jess grumbled

"Also because Annabeth might start lecturing us about math" Thalia said "Read fast Leo"

 **It was like cramming for a test without knowing the subject. And believe me, I'd done that enough times.  
** "Who hasn't?" Leo asked and Annabeth, Trina, Amethyst, Jason, Reyna and Josh raised their hands **  
The cab sped west. Every gust of wind through Death Valley sounded like a spirit of the dead. Every time the brakes hissed on an eighteen-wheeler, it reminded me of Echidnas reptilian voice.  
At sunset, the taxi dropped us at the beach in Santa Monica. It looked exactly the way L. A. beaches do in the movies, only it smelled worse. There were carnival rides lining the Pier, palm trees lining the sidewalks, homeless guys sleeping in the sand dunes, and surfer dudes waiting for the perfect wave.  
Grover, Annabeth, and I walked down to the edge of the surf.  
"What now?" Annabeth asked.  
The Pacific was turning gold in the setting sun.**

"Oh I love that" Trina said smiling

 **I thought about how long it had been since I'd stood on the beach at Montauk, on the opposite side of the country, looking out at a different sea.  
How could there be a god who could control all that? What did my science teacher used to say—two-thirds of the earth's surface was covered in water?**

"Of course you'll remember that" Annabeth said smiling

 **How could I be the son of someone that powerful?  
** "Do I have to explain how babies are made?" Will asked

"WILL!" **  
I stepped into the surf.  
"Percy?" Annabeth said. "What are you doing?"  
**"Stepping into the surf?" Amy answered **  
I kept walking, up to my waist, then my chest.  
She called after me, "You know how polluted that water is? There all kinds of toxic—"  
That's when my head went under.  
**"Perfect way to avoid a conversation" Leo laughed

"Or a fight" Jason added

"He really does it sometimes" Trina laughed

"What happened to always listening to Annabeth?" Rachel asked

"Always but with a few exceptions?" Percy said **  
I held my breath at first. Its difficult to intentionally inhale water. Finally I couldn't stand it anymore. I gasped. Sure enough, I could breathe normally.**

"Well duh! Because Poseidon!" Amy told Percy who rolled his eyes **  
I walked down into the shoals. I shouldn't have been able to see through the murk, but somehow I could tell where everything was. I could sense the rolling texture of the bottom. I could make out sand-dollar colonies dotting the sandbars. I could even see the currents, warm and cold streams swirling together.  
I felt something rub against my leg. I looked down and almost shot out of the water like a ballistic missile. Sliding along beside me was a five-foot-long mako shark.  
**"Seriously?!" Everyone cried out

"Aww they're like dogs" Trina said while Amethyst nodded her head in agreement

"They love being patted on their dorsal fins. They really are like dogs" Amethyst added

"But they're sharks!" Rachel cried

"They don't harm us. They love us!" Trina said **  
But the thing wasn't attacking. It was nuzzling me. Heeling like a dog.**

"See? Like a dog!"

 **Tentatively, I touched its dorsal fin. It bucked a little, as if inviting me to hold tighter. I grabbed the fin with both hands. It took off, pulling me along. The shark carried me down into the darkness. It deposited me at the edge of the ocean proper, where the sandbank dropped off into a huge chasm. It was like standing on the rim of the Grand Canyon at midnight, not being able to see much, but knowing the void was right there.  
The surface shimmered maybe a hundred and fifty feet above. I knew I should've been crushed by the pressure. Then again, I shouldn't have been able to breathe. I wondered if there was a limit to how deep I could go, if I could sink straight to the bottom of the Pacific.  
**"Have you tried testing the limit?" Piper asked

"I don't think there's a limit" Annabeth answered for Percy "But have you tried though seaweed brain?"

"So far I haven't reached a limit yet" **  
Then I saw something glimmering in the darkness below, growing bigger and brighter as it rose toward me. A woman's voice, like my mothers, called: "Percy Jackson. "  
As she got closer, her shape became clearer. She had flowing black hair, a dress made of green silk. Light flickered around her, and her eyes were so distractingly beautiful I hardly noticed the stallion-sized sea horse she was riding.  
**"Woah" **  
She dismounted. The seahorse and the mako shark whisked off and started playing something that looked like tag.**

"I love it when they do that!" Amethyst cried out cheerfully "they look so adorable!"

 **The underwater lady smiled at me. "You've come far, Percy Jackson. Well done. "  
I wasn't quite sure what to do, so I bowed. "You're the woman who spoke to me in the Mississippi River. "  
"Yes, child. I am a Nereid, a spirit of the sea. It was not easy to appear so far upriver, but the naiads, my freshwater cousins, helped sustain my life force. They honor Lord Poseidon, though they do not serve in his court. "  
"And . . . you serve in Poseidon's court?"  
She nodded. "It has been many years since a child of the Sea God has been born. We have watched you with great interest. "  
**"See? We're always being watched!" Leo cried out

"Seriously do you guys think we're being watched right now?" Hazel asked

"Probably"

"By who?"

"By the fates?"

"The gods?"

"How are we being watched?"

"Hidden camera's?!"

"We should find those cameras!"

"Guys" Annabeth said trying to interrupt the discussion in front of her

"SHUT UP!" Annabeth cried out and everyone stopped talking and looked at her

"Like I said before it's only going to drive us crazy. As much as I would want to find out as well. It won't do us any good if we stop reading and do something else. So let's just continue reading and hopefully get some answers"

A moment of silence

"Read Leo!"

"Alright Alright" **  
Suddenly I remembered faces in the waves off Montauk Beach when I was a little boy, reflections of smiling women. Like so many of the weird things in my life, I'd never given it much thought before.  
** "You've been surrounded by women all your life, Perce" Grover said

"And would be surrounded by women for the rest of my life" Percy said looking at his daughters

"Also the fact that a few girls seems to be really interested in him" Thalia said while Annabeth rolled her eyes

"What do you mean?" Hazel asked

"Were there other girls besides Annabeth?" Frank asked

Rachel, Calypso and Reyna were trying to avoid everyone's eyes

"There were a few" Annabeth said while Percy hugged her tighter

"Who?" Jason asked

"Well now that I think about it there was this one amazon during our quest" Frank said

"Frank!"

"Ooops. I'm frank! I'm sorry!"

"An amazon?"Annabeth asked Percy

"Did I forget to tell you about that?" Percy smiled nervously

"Is forget the right term?" Annabeth asked annoyed

"Uhm is that a trick question?"

"I think this is the time where you run, daddy" Amethyst suggested

Percy looked back and forth between Annabeth and the door afraid that he might get judo flipped again

"I turned her down" he said quietly but everyone heard him

"He turned everyone down Annabeth, don't worry" Rachel smiled at Annabeth

"Wait a second" Piper said "You and Percy?" She asked Rachel

"I was part of a triangle" Rachel admitted

"A triangle?" Jason asked

"A love triangle" Piper answered

"But Annabeth said there were a few of them" Hazel said "Who are the others?"

"So it wasn't really a triangle?" Will asked

"Maybe they didn't happen at the same time" Alex said

"Oh it was a square for a bit" Annabeth said sneaking a peak at Calypso

"You?" Piper asked Calypso who had seen the glance that Annabeth had given her

"Percy was stuck in my island for a while" Calypso answered

"You know about that?" Jason asked Leo who nodded

"So there were just two of them?" Nick asked "plus the amazon?"

"One more actually. For a brief moment" Reyna said

"Who?" A few asked her and Reyna gave them a look like it should be obvious

"YOU?!"

Reyna nodded and Annabeth was laughing at how this conversation was making Percy really uncomfortable. She high fived Rachel and gave Reyna and Calypso a smile.

"I thought you liked Jason?" Leo asked

"What?!" Jessy asked

"You didn't know?" Hazel asked

"No" Jessy said

"I knew" Josh answered

"Why didn't you tell me?!"

"I thought you knew Jess"

"I didn't know and I wanted to know" she pouted

"It's ancient history Jess"

"But I still would have wanted to know!"

Leo sighed "I feel you bros" he said patting both Jason and Percy at the back "With guys as hot like us all da ladies luv us!"

"Whatever Leo" Jason said

"Say it with me!" Leo cried out

"Say what?" Percy asked

"All da ladies luv us!"

"Yeah… no"

"Read Valdez" **  
"If my father is so interested in me," I said, "why isn't he here? Why doesn't he speak to me?"  
A cold current rose out of the depths.  
"Do not judge the Lord of the Sea too harshly," the Nereid told me. "He stands at the brink of an unwanted war. He has much to occupy his time. Besides, he is forbidden to help you directly. The gods may not show such favoritism. "  
**"I don't get that rule at all" Piper said

"Nobody does" Hazel said **  
"Even to their own children?"  
"Especially to them. The gods can work by indirect influence only. That is why I give you a warning, and a gift. "  
She held out her hand. Three white pearls flashed in her palm.  
"I know your journey to Hades realm," she said. "Few mortals have ever done this and survived: Orpheus, who had great music skill; Hercules, who had great strength; Houdini, who could escape even the depths of Tartarus. Do you have these talents?"  
**"Music skills? Nope" Thalia said

"Trina can sing though" Nick said

"You do?" Annabeth asked Trina who then glared at Nick

"Not really" she answered timidly

"By not really she means she's amazing" Nick said

"Nick stop"

"Oh we have to hear you sing!" Will said

Trina shook her head

"Come on!" Percy said

"After Lunch!" Annabeth said

Trina was about to protest but Leo had already continued reading **  
"Urn . . . no, ma'am. "  
"Ah, but you have something else, Percy. You have gifts you have only begun to know. The oracles have foretold a great and terrible future for you, should you survive to manhood. Poseidon would not have you die before your time. Therefore take these, and when you are in need, smash a pearl at your feet. "  
**"Then what?" Nico asked **  
"What will happen?"  
"That," she said, "depends on the need. But remember: what belongs to the sea will always return to the sea. "  
**"What belongs to the sea will always return to the sea" Trina repeated "I like that" **  
"What about the warning?"  
Her eyes flickered with green light. "Go with what your heart tells you, or you will lose all. Hades feeds on doubt and hopelessness. He will trick you if he can, make you mistrust your own judgment. Once you are in his realm, he will never willingly let you leave. Keep faith. Good luck, Percy Jackson. "  
She summoned her sea horse and rode toward the void.  
"Wait!" I called. "At the river, you said not to trust the gifts. What gifts?"  
**"Wait!" Alex said "you already received gifts!"

"Which one?" Jess asked

"The backpack from Ares" Alex answered

"Ohmygods! Your right!" **  
"Goodbye, young hero," she called back, her voice fading into the depths. "You must listen to your heart. " She became a speck of glowing green, and then she was gone.  
I wanted to follow her down into the darkness. I wanted to see the court of Poseidon. But I looked up at the sunset darkening on the surface. My friends are waiting. We had so little time. . . .  
I kicked upward toward the shore.  
When I reached the beach, my clothes dried instantly. I told Grover and Annabeth what had happened, and showed them the pearls.  
Annabeth grimaced. "No gift comes without a price. "  
**"You didn't say that about Ares' backpack" Alex pointed out **  
"They were free. "  
"No. " She shook her head. "There is no such thing as a free lunch. That's an ancient Greek saying that translated pretty well into American. There will be a price. You wait. "  
On that happy thought, we turned our backs on the sea.  
**"How was that a happy thought?" Amethyst asked **  
With some spare change from Ares backpack, we took the bus into West Hollywood. I showed the driver the Underworld address slip I'd taken from Aunty Em's Garden Gnome Emporium, but he'd never heard of DOA Recording Studios.  
"You remind me of somebody I saw on TV," he told me. "You a child actor or something?"  
"Uh . . . I'm a stunt double . . . for a lot of child actors. "  
**"Nice save" Thalia said **  
"Oh! That explains it. "  
We thanked him and got off quickly at the next stop.  
We wandered for miles on foot, looking for DOA. Nobody seemed to know where it was. It didn't appear in the phone book.  
**"Because it's hidden by the mist!" Hazel told him **  
Twice, we ducked into alleys to avoid cop cars.  
I froze in front of an appliance-store window because a television was playing an interview with somebody who looked very familiar—my stepdad, Smelly Gabe. He was talking to Barbara Walters—I mean, as if he were some kind of huge celebrity. She was interviewing him in our apartment, in the middle of a poker game,**

"You and Sally are missing and he's playing poker?!" Annabeth cried out

 **and there was a young blond lady sitting next to him, patting his hand.  
A fake tear glistened on his cheek. He was saying, "Honest, Ms. Walters, if it wasn't for Sugar here, my grief counselor, I'd be a wreck. My stepson took everything I cared about. My wife . . . my Camaro . . . I—I'm sorry. I have trouble talking about it. "  
**A few growls and curses were heard in the room **  
"There you have it, America. " Barbara Walters turned to the camera. "A man torn apart. An adolescent boy with serious issues. Let me show you, again, the last known photo of this troubled young fugitive, taken a week ago in Denver. "  
** "FUGITIVE?!" **  
The screen cut to a grainy shot of me, Annabeth, and Grover standing outside the Colorado diner, talking to Ares.  
** "SERIOUSLY?!"

"That was the photo taken by the waitress and the cook!" **  
"Who are the other children in this photo?" Barbara Walters asked dramatically. "Who is the man with them? Is Percy Jackson a delinquent, a terrorist, or perhaps the brainwashed victim of a frightening new cult? When we come back, we chat with a leading child psychologist. Stay tuned, America. "  
** More curses were heard around the room that Amethyst's ears had to be covered by her big sister **  
"Cmon," Grover told me. He hauled me away before I could punch a hole in the appliance-store window.  
** "You should've let him punch something!" Thalia argued

"And get more photos of us taken and risk getting caught by the police?" Grover retorted back **  
It got dark, and hungry-looking characters started coming out on the streets to play. Now, don't get me wrong. I'm a New Yorker. I don't scare easy.**

"Definitely" Alex who also happens to be a New Yorker agreed with Percy.

 **But L. A. had a totally different feel from New York. Back home, everything seemed close. It didn't matter how big the city was, you could get anywhere without getting lost. The street pattern and the subway made sense. There was a system to how things worked. A kid could be safe as long as he wasn't stupid.  
** "True" Alex said

"Hey! I got lost in New York a few times" Will said "I'm not from New York you know" **  
L. A. wasn't like that. It was spread out, chaotic, hard to move around. It reminded me of Ares. It wasn't enough for L. A. to be big; it had to prove it was big by being loud and strange and difficult to navigate, too.**

"It's not that difficult" Piper said

"That's cause you live in L.A!" Percy said

 **I didn't know how we were ever going to find the entrance to the Underworld by tomorrow, the summer solstice.  
We walked past gangbangers, bums, and street hawkers, who looked at us like they were trying to figure if we were worth the trouble of mugging.  
As we hurried passed the entrance of an alley, a voice from the darkness said, "Hey, you. "  
**"oh no" Amethyst said **  
Like an idiot, I stopped.  
** "Why's you stop?! You shouldn't have stopped!" Thalia cried out while at the same time slapping Percy upside the head **  
Before I knew it, we were surrounded. A gang of kids had circled us. Six of them in all—white kids with expensive clothes and mean faces. Like the kids at Yancy Academy: rich brats playing at being bad boys.  
Instinctively, I uncapped Riptide.  
**"Why!?" **  
When the sword appeared out of nowhere, the kids backed off, but their leader was either really stupid or really brave, because he kept coming at me with a switchblade.  
** "You know it can't affect mortals dummy!"Another comment from Thalia

"I didn't know for sure!" **  
I made the mistake of swinging.  
The kid yelped. But he must've been one hundred percent mortal, because the blade passed harmlessly right through his chest. He looked down. "What the . . ."  
I figured I had about three seconds before his shock turned to anger. "Run!" I screamed at Annabeth and Grover. **

"So now you run" Thalia sighed **  
We pushed two kids out of the way and raced down the street, not knowing where we were going. We turned a sharp corner.  
"There!" Annabeth shouted.  
Only one store on the block looked open, its windows glaring with neon. The sign above the door said something like CRSTUYS WATRE BDE ALPACE.  
"Crustys Water Bed Palace?" Grover translated.  
**"Oh so that's why it's Annabeth's idea" Piper commented remembering the chapter's title **  
It didn't sound like a place I'd ever go except in an emergency, but this definitely qualified.  
We burst through the doors, ran behind a water bed, and ducked. A split second later, the gang kids ran past outside.  
"I think we lost them," Grover panted.  
**"Don't jinx it Grover!" Thalia yelled **  
A voice behind us boomed, "Lost who?"  
We all jumped.  
**"Who wouldn't?" Nick asked **  
Standing behind us was a guy who looked like a raptor in a leisure suit. He was at least seven feet tall, with absolutely no hair. He had gray, leathery skin, thick-lidded eyes, and a cold, reptilian smile. He moved toward us slowly, but I got the feeling he could move fast if he needed to.  
** "Monster! Monster! Monster!" Leo teased

"What are you doing, Leo?" Calypso asked

"This guy's a monster!"

"Well duh" Thalia commented rolling her eyes "Just read Valdez" **  
His suit might've come from the Lotus Casino. It belonged back in the seventies, big-time. The shirt was silk paisley, unbuttoned halfway down his hairless chest. The lapels on his velvet jacket were as wide as landing strips. The silver chains around his neck—I couldn't even count them.  
"I'm Crusty," he said, with a tartar-yellow smile.  
**"The crab?" Amethyst asked **  
I resisted the urge to say, Yes, you are.  
"Sorry to barge in," I told him. "We were just, um, browsing. "  
"You mean hiding from those no-good kids," he grumbled. "They hang around every night. I get a lot of people in here, thanks to them. Say, you want to look at a water bed?"  
I was about to say No, thanks, when he put a huge paw on my shoulder and steered me deeper into the showroom.  
**"Paw?" Rachel asked **  
There was every kind of water bed you could imagine: different kinds of wood, different patterns of sheets; queen-size, king-size, emperor-of-the-universe-size.  
** "So a size for Zeus then?" Thalia asked

"Yep" Grover answered **  
"This is my most popular model. " Crusty spread his hands proudly over a bed covered with black satin sheets, with built-in Lava Lamps on the headboard. The mattress vibrated, so it looked like oil-flavored Jell-O.  
"Million-hand massage," Crusty told us. "Go on, try it out. Shoot, take a nap. I don't care. No business today, any-way.  
**"What?" Jessy commented

"He said to" Nick started

"I know Nick!" **  
"Um," I said, "I don't think . . . "  
"Million-hand massage!" Grover cried, and dove in. "Oh, you guys! This is cool. "  
**"GROVER!"

"Sorry"

"You were the one with the monster sensing nose!" **  
"Hmm," Crusty said, stroking his leathery chin. "Almost, almost. "  
"Almost what?" I asked.  
He looked at Annabeth. "Do me a favor and try this one over here, honey. Might fit. "  
**"Fit? What's that an outfit?" Jessy scoffed "speaking of outfits! I love what you're wearing Trina!"

Everyone turned their heads to look at what Trina was wearing.

She was wearing denim overalls with a white off-shoulder top

"You bought me this" Trina told her

"Exactly! That really suits you! I love it!" Jessy smiled at her **  
Annabeth said, "But what—"  
He patted her reassuringly on the shoulder and led her over to the Safari Deluxe model with teakwood lions carved into the frame and a leopard-patterned comforter. When Annabeth didn't want to lie down, Crusty pushed her.  
**"That's mean" Amethyst pouted

"He's a monster. What do you expect?" Nick told her **  
"Hey!" she protested.  
Crusty snapped his fingers. "Ergo!"  
Ropes sprang from the sides of the bed, lashing around Annabeth, holding her to the mattress.**

 **Grover tried to get up, but ropes sprang from his black-satin bed, too, and lashed him down.  
"N-not c-c-cool!" he yelled, his voice vibrating from the million-hand massage. "N-not c-cool a-at all!"  
**"Totally not!" Rachel cried out

"I think I'm going to be afraid of my bed tonight" Amethyst said

"You can sleep in my room" Annabeth told her **  
The giant looked at Annabeth, then turned toward me and grinned. "Almost, darn it. "  
I tried to step away, but his hand shot out and clamped around the back of my neck. "Whoa, kid. "Don't worry. We'll find you one in a sec. "  
"Let my friends go. "  
"Oh, sure I will. But I got to make them fit, first. "  
**"What?" Piper asked **  
"What do you mean?"  
"All the beds are exactly six feet, see? Your friends are too short. Got to make them fit. "  
**"Why not just make beds that are not six feet?" Frank cried out **  
Annabeth and Grover kept struggling.  
"Can't stand imperfect measurements," Crusty muttered. "Ergo!"  
**"Well he's too much of a perfectionist" Reyna commented

"I know right?" Will agreed **  
A new set of ropes leaped out from the top and bottom of the beds, wrapping around Grover and Annabeth's ankles, then around their armpits. The ropes started tightening, pulling my friends from both ends.  
** Everyone had very shocked expressions and were sneaking glances at both Annabeth and Grover making sure that they were okay. **  
"Don't worry," Crusty told me, "These are stretching jobs. Maybe three extra inches on their spines. They might even live. Now why don't we find a bed you like, huh?"  
** "Might?!" Calypso shrieked **  
"Percy!" Grover yelled.  
My mind was racing. I knew I couldn't take on this giant water-bed salesman alone. He would snap my neck before I ever got my sword out.  
"Your real names not Crusty, is it?" I asked.  
**"Not at all" Trina muttered **  
"Legally, its Procrustes," he admitted.  
"The Stretcher," I said. I remembered the story: the giant who'd tried to kill Theseus with excess hospitality on his way to Athens.  
"Yeah," the salesman said. "But who can pronounce Procrustes? Bad for business. Now Crusty, anybody can say that. "  
**"He's got a point though" Will said **  
"You're right. Its got a good ring to it. "  
** "What are you doing, Percy?!" Rachel asked and gave him a glare

Percy decided to not answer her and to just let Leo read the chapter **  
His eyes lit up. "You think so?"  
"Oh, absolutely," I said. "And the workmanship on these beds? Fabulous!"**

"Excuse me Percy but do you actually want Annabeth and Grover to be stretched to death?!" Thalia screamed at him

"Oh shut up Pinecone face" **  
He grinned hugely, but his fingers didn't loosen on my neck. "I tell my customers that. Every time. Nobody bothers to look at the workmanship. How many built-in Lava Lamp headboards have you seen?"  
"Not too many. "  
"That's right!"  
"Percy!" Annabeth yelled. "What are you doing?"  
**"See?! Even Annabeth agrees!" Rachel screamed at him while Thalia also throwed him a glare

"Just let Leo read!" Percy cried out **  
"Don't mind her," I told Procrustes. "She's impossible. "  
** "Can you still tell her that now?" Jason asked him

"Nope" Percy answered **  
The giant laughed. "All my customers are. Never six feet exactly. So inconsiderate. And then they complain about the fitting. "  
"What do you do if they're longer than six feet?"  
"Oh, that happens all the time. Its a simple fix. "  
He let go of my neck, but before I could react, he reached behind a nearby sales desk and brought out a huge double-bladed brass axe. He said, "I just center the subject as best I can and lop off whatever hangs over on either end. "  
**"You've got to be kidding me" Jessy said

"I wish. But he isn't" Trina told her **  
"Ah," I said, swallowing hard. "Sensible. "  
"I'm so glad to come across an intelligent customer!"  
**A few people snorted and rolled their eyes **  
The ropes were really stretching my friends now. Annabeth was turning pale. Grover made gurgling sounds, like a strangled goose.  
** "Now it's Grover the goose!" Amethyst laughed **  
"So, Crusty . . . " I said, trying to keep my voice light. I glanced at the sales tag on the valentine-shaped Honeymoon Special. "Does this one really have dynamic stabilizers to stop wave motion?"  
** "Hurry up Percy!" Piper screamed **  
"Absolutely. Try it out. "  
"Yeah, maybe I will. But would it work even for a big guy like you? No waves at all?"  
**"Oh" Trina commented realizing Percy's plan "Nice"

"What?" Nick asked

"You'll see" **  
"Guaranteed. "  
"No way. "  
"Way. "  
"Show me. "  
**"Why do I feel like you're two teenagers talking about make-up?" Josh asked

"What makes you think that?" Jason asked

Josh, Nick and Alex looked at each other before pointing at Jessy and Trina

"We get to hear conversations like that all the time with these two" Nick answered

"Especially me since I live with one of them and dating the other one" Josh said

"Don't forget the other Aphrodite girls at Camp" Alex said

"Trina you have to try this lipstick it's amazing and will totally suit you. Really? No way! Yes Way! Show me!" Nick said doing a fake impression of Trina and Jessy's conversation

"Uhm Nick" Alex started "I've received that glare from Jess multiple times when we were dating and that does not look good" Alex told Nick who was looking at Jess glaring at Nick

Nick immediately jumped and pushed Alex to his previous spot on the couch "Go sit with your ex while I try to avoid her" Nick told his brother and ducked behind Will

Jess was still glaring at Nick but she was also glaring at Alex too

"Are you mad at me too?" he asked her

"Oh let's just read" Jessy grumbled and scooted away from him

 **He sat down eagerly on the bed, patted the mattress. "No waves. See?"  
I snapped my fingers. "Ergo. "  
Ropes lashed around Crusty and flattened him against the mattress.  
"Hey!" he yelled.  
"Center him just right," I said.  
The ropes readjusted themselves at my command. Crustys whole head stuck out the top. His feet stuck out the bottom.  
**"Go Percy!" Jason cheered **  
"No!" he said. "Wait! This is just a demo. "  
I uncapped Riptide. "A few simple adjustments . . . "  
I had no qualms about what I was about to do. If Crusty were human, I couldn't hurt him anyway. If he was a monster, he deserved to turn into dust for a while.  
"You drive a hard bargain," he told me. "I'll give you thirty percent off on selected floor models. "  
**"Oh precious Crusty still doing business as he was about to die" Leo said in a very serious tone **  
"I think I'll start with the top. " I raised my sword.  
"No money down! No interest for six months!"  
I swung the sword. Crusty stopped making offers.  
I cut the ropes on the other beds. Annabeth and Grover got to their feet, groaning and wincing and cursing me a lot.  
**"Who wouldn't?" Thalia said **  
"You look taller," I said.  
"Very funny," Annabeth said. "Be faster next time. "  
**"Definitely" Annabeth said rubbing her neck **  
I looked at the bulletin board behind Crustys sales desk. There was an advertisement for Hermes Delivery Service, and another for the All-New Compendium of L. A. Area Monsters—"The only Monstrous Yellow Pages you'll ever need!" Under that, a bright orange flier for DOA Recording Studios, offering commissions for heroes souls. "We are always looking for new talent!" DOAs address was right underneath with a map.  
"Come on," I told my friends.  
"Give us a minute," Grover complained. "We were almost stretched to death. "  
"Then youre ready for the Underworld," I said. "It's only a block from here. "  
**"Dun dun dun. That's the end of the chapter" Leo said "So who is ready to read about the underworld?"

"Lunch first. Then we read about the land of the dead" Annabeth said as she got up and everybody followed her lead

 **HELLO HELLO EVERYONE! HOPE YOU LIKE THIS CHAPTER AND PLEASE TELL ME YOUR THOUGHTS IN A REVIEW. SEE YOU NEXT CHAPTER! XOXO CHINFEV1203**


	26. Fifth Day : Fifth Lunch

Everyone had gathered in the dining room and were helping themselves with their lunch. Mostly their usual routine since they have arrived at this big house.

"Can I sit next to you?" Alex asked Jess

"You were already sitting next to me earlier" she rolled her eyes

"So is that a no?" He asked confused

"Just sit down Alex" she told him and pointed at the chair next to her

Everything was going according to their usual routine when Leo suddenly said "I'm bored let's do something else"

"What do you mean?" Calypso asked him

"Everyday since we got here we do exactly this when we have lunch, we eat and we talk, it's turning into a routine and it's getting boring" he answered

"Isn't that what people usually do at Lunch?" Will asked

"But we're demigods! We're not usual people! Let's spice things up a notch"

"Well, what do you suggest, Leo?" Jason asked

"I don't know" Leo laughed

"Truth or Dare?" Rachel suggested

"Sure why not" Piper said "Everyone in?"

"Wait. We're going to play while eating? That doesn't sound healthy" Will said

"Oh come on Will!" Everyone cried out

Piper thought that it would be better if they already had a jar full of dares and another jar full of questions for truth. She told them that sometimes it's hard to think of a question or dare so to save time they'd have a jar prepared and they'd just pick one from a jar. A while later they were all ready to play Truth or Dare.

"So who is going first?" Hazel asked

"I'll do it" Rachel said and turned to Percy "Percy Truth or Dare"

"Dare"

"Are you going to give him a dare or just pick from the jar?" Grover asked

"Nah. I have something in mind" she answered "I dare you to get slapped by the Person on your right"

Everyone turned to Percy's right and found that it was Annabeth.

"Seriously?!" Percy cried out while Annabeth, Rachel and pretty much the rest of the gang were laughing

After Annabeth had slapped Percy while laughing at him and kissed his cheek afterward it was then Percy's turn.

"Leo truth or dare?"

"Dare!"

"I dare you to act like whatever Animal that Frank can turn into for 1 minute!"

The 1 minute was spent on Frank turning into various animals it started with a dog, to a cat, to a baby lion, a squirrel, a unicorn, a horse, and eagle.

"I hate that dare" Leo grumbled once the 1 minute was over

"We all loved it though" Thalia snickered

"Hey beauty queen Truth or Dare" Leo said turning to Piper

"Truth"

"Chicken"

"Is what Frank should've turned into so that you acted like a chicken too" Hazel laughed

"Whatever, Repair boy"

"Tell me about your first kiss"

Piper turned to a deep shade of red and was trying to not look Jason in the eye

"Wait…. Jason isn't your first kiss?" Leo laughed

"Well… no. You know that Leo!"

"Do I?" Leo teased

"I thought I was your first kiss" Jason said

"Busted" Percy muttered then got a glare from Piper

"It was a guy from my school before the Wilderness School. We went on a date at the movies and we kissed that's it."

"That's it?" Jess asked

"Pretty much yeah" Piper answered

"Seriously?" Jess asked

"Yes! Why was what up with your first kiss?"

"Haven't picked truth yet" Jess smirked at her and raised her eyebrows

"Jess truth or dare"

"Dare, mommy dearest"

Piper got the jar full of dares and picked a piece of paper, she unrolled the paper and looked at Jess smirking

"What? What is it?"

"I dare you to sit on the lap of the person to your left"

"Oh that's easy Trina's on my left" Jess said

"Uhm no Jess I'm on your right" Trina told her slowly

"I thought we already had left and right covered" Josh facepalmed

"I get confused sometimes okay!" Jess shouted annoyed at her brother and took a deep breath to calm herself.

"Then" Jess said and looked at her left and found that it was Alex "oh gods of Olympus no. Can I skip?"

"No!" Nick yelled "We already said before starting the game that no one is allowed to skip"

"Fine" Jess grumbled and stood up to sit on her ex-boyfriends lap who looked like he didn't know what to do "How long is this?"

"Until you get another turn" Piper said

"Seriously?!" She cried out and everyone nodded while trying hard not to laugh at Jess "This is so unfair!"

"All is fair in truth or dare, darling" Leo told her

She groaned and turned towards her brother "Truth or Dare Josh"

"Truth"

"What do you really hope your girlfriend will never find out about?"

"Jess!" Josh shouted while his sister smirked

"What do you don't want me to find out?" Trina frowned

Josh groaned "the gift I'm getting you for your birthday"

"Ooooh. What are you getting me?" Trina asked

"I want to know too!" Amethyst squealed

"When's your birthday?" Annabeth asked which seemed weird that she had to ask her daughter's birthday

"December 12"

Josh ignored his girlfriend which was probably a wrong moved and turned to his sister "Just because of that I'm not saving you from your consequence"

Then he turned to Trina "Truth or Dare"

"Dare"

"I dare you to not ask about your birthday gift for the whole day" he told her

She grumbled for a while and punched her boyfriends arm, then turned towards Annabeth

"Truth or Dare, Mother Dearest"

"Dare"

Trina fished out a paper from the jar and read it a loud for everyone to hear.

Annabeth had been dared to act like her exact opposite, she had to act like she wasn't super smart which unsurprisingly was very hard for Annabeth to do. After, Frank was dared to wear a cheerleading uniform (that belonged to Jess) which was way to small for Frank. Then, Reyna was dared to slap herself for 1 minuted.

After a few more turns (Jess never got another turn) they all decided to stop the game for a while and go back to reading the book.

"We're going to continue this at dinner right?" Leo asked

"Sure why not" Calypso said


	27. Chapter 18: Piper

**18\. ANNABETH DOES OBEDIENCE SCHOOL** Piper read **  
**"Why is that not a surprise?" Thalia muttered

"Hey!"

"You know it's true, Annie"

"Don't call me Annie" the blonde grumbled **  
We stood in the shadows of Valencia Boulevard, looking up at gold letters etched in black marble: DOA RECORDING STUDIOS.  
Underneath, stenciled on the glass doors: NO SOLICITORS. NO LOITERING. NO LIVING.  
**Everyone looked at Nico

"Don't ask me, I have no idea why they have that on the glass either"

"It makes sense though" Nick said "who would want the living lurking with the dead?"

"But that would give away their cover" Jess responded

"Nah people might just think it's a joke or something" **  
It was almost midnight, but the lobby was brightly lit and full of people.**

"I thought it said no living?" Piper asked

"Who said they still live?" Nico smirked

 **Behind the security desk sat a tough-looking guard with sunglasses and an earpiece.  
I turned to my friends. "Okay. You remember the plan. "  
"The plan," Grover gulped. "Yeah. I love the plan. "  
**"Why do I feel like Percy was the one who thought of the plan" Jason said **  
Annabeth said, "What happens if the plan doesn't work?"  
"Don't think negative. "**

"How could you not think negative at a time like that?" Nick asked **  
"Right," she said. "We're entering the Land of the Dead, and I shouldn't think negative. "  
I took the pearls out of my pocket, the three milky spheres the Nereid had given me in Santa Monica. They didn't seem like much of a backup in case something went wrong.  
**"Things aren't always what they seem" Rachel told Percy **  
Annabeth put her hand on my shoulder. "I'm sorry, Percy. You're right, we'll make it. It'll be fine. "  
She gave Grover a nudge.  
"Oh, right!" he chimed in. "We got this far. We'll find the master bolt and save your mom. No problem. "  
**"I think you just jinxed it, Grover" Jason told him **  
I looked at them both, and felt really grateful. Only a few minutes before, I'd almost gotten them stretched to death on deluxe water beds, and now they were trying to be brave for my sake, trying to make me feel better.  
** "That's what friends are for, Perce. You got my back and I got yours" Grover smiled at Percy and he smiled back remembering all the times that they had each others back. **  
I slipped the pearls back in my pocket. "Let's whip some Underworld butt. "  
We walked inside the DOA lobby.  
Music played softly on hidden speakers. The carpet and walls were steel gray. Pencil cactuses grew in the corners like skeleton hands. The furniture was black leather, and every seat was taken. There were people sitting on couches, people standing up, people staring out the windows or waiting for the elevator. Nobody moved, or talked, or did much of anything. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see them all just fine, but if I focused on any one of them in particular, they started looking . . . transparent. I could see right through their bodies.  
**"So the ghost are just there at the lobby?" Nick asked and Percy nodded **  
The security guards desk was a raised podium, so we had to look up at him.  
He was tall and elegant, with chocolate-colored skin and bleached-blond hair shaved military style. He wore tortoiseshell shades and a silk Italian suit that matched his hair. A black rose was pinned to his lapel under a silver name tag.  
**"He's too fancy for a security guard" Amethyst muttered

"I don't think security guard is the right word to describe him Amy" Jess told her **  
I read the name tag, then looked at him in bewilderment. "Your name is Chiron?"  
** Reyna face palmed

"He hates that!" Nicol laughed **  
He leaned across the desk. I couldn't see anything in his glasses except my own reflection, but his smile was sweet and cold, like a pythons, right before it eats you.  
"What a precious young lad. " He had a strange accent—British, maybe, but also as if he had learned English as a second language. "Tell me, mate, do I look like a centaur?"  
"N-no. "  
"Sir," he added smoothly.  
**"A polite elegant security guard" Amethyst snickered **  
"Sir," I said.  
He pinched the name tag and ran his finger under the letters. "Can you read this, mate? It says C-H-A-R-O-N. Say it with me: CARE-ON. "  
"Charon. "  
"Amazing! Now: Mr. Charon. "  
"Mr. Charon," I said.  
**"Why do I feel like he's teaching a kindergarten?" Hazel asked

"That's because he is" Annabeth laughed while Percy pouted **  
"Well done. " He sat back. "I hate being confused with that old horse-man. And now, how may I help you little dead ones?"  
His question caught in my stomach like a fastball. I looked at Annabeth for support.  
"We want to go the Underworld," she said.  
**"Annabeth seriously?!" Thalia asked her friend

"I panicked okay!" **  
Charon's mouth twitched. "Well, that's refreshing. "**

"Who would want to go there?!" Nick asked **  
"It is?" she asked.**

"Duh Annabeth" Thalia facepalmed

"Oh shut up" **  
"Straightforward and honest. No screaming. No There must be a mistake, Mr. Charon. " He looked us over. "How did you die, then?"  
I nudged Grover.  
"Oh," he said. "Um . . . drowned . . . in the bathtub. "  
**At this most of the demigods in the room face palmed **  
"All three of you?" Charon asked. We nodded.  
** "You could've said pool you know?" Thalia told Grover

"I panicked!" **  
"Big bathtub. " Charon looked mildly impressed. "I don't suppose you have coins for passage. Normally, with adults, you see, I could charge your American Express, or add the ferry price to your last cable bill. But with children . . . alas, you never die prepared. Suppose you'll have to take a seat for a few centuries. "  
** "What's the point of that? They still wouldn't have coins anyway. It's not like dead children would still grow there" Piper muttered **  
"Oh, but we have coins. " I set three golden drachmas on the counter, part of the stash I'd found in Crustys office desk.  
"Well, now . . . " Charon moistened his lips. "Real drachmas. Real golden drachmas. I haven't seen these in . . . "  
His fingers hovered greedily over the coins.  
We were so close.  
**"Oh no" **  
Then Charon looked at me. That cold stare behind his glasses seemed to bore a hole through my chest. "Here now," he said. "You couldn't read my name correctly. Are you dyslexic, lad?"  
** "Say no say no say no" Leo chanted **  
"No," I said. "Im dead. "**

 **Charon leaned forward and took a sniff. "You're not dead. I should've known. You're a godling. "**

 **"We have to get to the Underworld," I insisted.**

 **Charon made a growling sound deep in his throat.**

 **Immediately, all the people in the waiting room got up and started pacing, agitated, lighting cigarettes, running hands through their hair, or checking their wristwatches.**

 **"Leave while you can," Charon told us. "I'll just take these and forget I saw you. "**

 **He started to go for the coins, but I snatched them back.  
** "I don't think he'll like that" Hazel commented **  
"No service, no tip. " I tried to sound braver than I felt.**

 ****"Don't we all go through a moment like that?" Rachel asked "To sound brave even if we're really scared"

Everyone in the room nodded in agreement

 **Charon growled again—a deep, blood-chilling sound. The spirits of the dead started pounding on the elevator doors.**

 **"It's a shame, too," I sighed. "We had more to offer. "**

 ****at this Alex leaned a little forward and smirked he think he knows what Percy's trying to do.

 **I held up the entire bag from Crustys stash. I took out a fistful of drachmas and let the coins spill through my fingers.**

 ****"Nice" Alex said "I see what you're trying to do"

 **Charons growl changed into something more like a lions purr. "Do you think I can be bought, godling? Eh . . . just out of curiosity, how much have you got there?"**

"Uh huh you got him alright" Alex told Percy

 **"A lot," I said. "I bet Hades doesn't pay you well enough for such hard work. "**

 **"Oh, you don't know the half of it. How would you like to babysit these spirits all day? Always Please don't let me be dead or Please let me across for free. I haven't had a pay raise in three thousand years. Do you imagine suits like this come cheap?"**

"He does realize wearing suits isn't part of the job description?" Hazel asked

"I don't think he does" Nico said

 **"You deserve better," I agreed. "A little appreciation. Respect. Good pay. "**

 **With each word, I stacked another gold coin on the counter.**

 **Charon glanced down at his silk Italian jacket, as if imagining himself in something even better. "I must say, lad, you're making some sense now. Just a little. "**

"A little?" Percy scoffed

 **I stacked another few coins. "I could mention a pay raise while I'm talking to Hades. "**

"Did you actually?" Hazel asked

"I think I did" Percy said trying to remember "Then again, we'll find out soon"

 **He sighed. "The boats almost full, anyway. I might as well add you three and be off. "**

 **He stood, scooped up our money, and said, "Come along. "**

 **We pushed through the crowd of waiting spirits, who started grabbing at our clothes like the wind, their voices whispering things I couldn't make out. Charon shoved them out of the way, grumbling, "Freeloaders. "**

 **He escorted us into the elevator, which was already crowded with souls of the dead, each one holding a green boarding pass. Charon grabbed two spirits who were trying to get on with us and pushed them back into the lobby.**

 **"Right. Now, no one get any ideas while I'm gone," he announced to the waiting room. "And if anyone moves the dial off my easy-listening station again, I'll make sure you're here for another thousand years. Understand?"**

"Harsh much?" Leo commented while thinking that he should always bring a gold drachma, you know just in case.

 **He shut the doors. He put a key card into a slot in the elevator panel and we started to descend.**

 **"What happens to the spirits waiting in the lobby?" Annabeth asked.**

 **"Nothing," Charon said.**

 **"For how long?"**

 **"Forever, or until I'm feeling generous. "**

 **"Oh," she said. "That's . . . fair. "**

 **Charon raised an eyebrow. "Whoever said death was fair, young miss? Wait until its your turn. You'll die soon enough, where you're going. "**

 **"Well get out alive," I said.**

"And that they did" Amethyst smiled

Her parents weren't going to the land of the dead again anytime soon, and if they did they'd go in and out alive.

 **"Ha. "**

 **I got a sudden dizzy feeling. We weren't going down anymore, but forward. The air turned misty. Spirits around me started changing shape. Their modern clothes flickered, turning into gray hooded robes. The floor of the elevator began swaying.**

 **I blinked hard. When I opened my eyes, Charons creamy Italian suit had been replaced by a long black robe. His tortoiseshell glasses were gone. Where his eyes should've been were empty sockets—like Ares' eyes, except Charons were totally dark, full of night and death and despair.**

 **He saw me looking, and said, "Well?"**

 **"Nothing," I managed.**

 **I thought he was grinning, but that wasn't it. The flesh of his face was becoming transparent, letting me see straight through to his skull.**

 **The floor kept swaying.**

 **Grover said, "I think I'm getting seasick. "**

"More like river sick" Amethyst said "you weren't even at sea Uncle Goat boy"

 **When I blinked again, the elevator wasn't an elevator anymore. We were standing in a wooden barge. Charon was poling us across a dark, oily river, swirling with bones, dead fish, and other, stranger things—plastic dolls, crushed carnations, soggy diplomas with gilt edges.**

 **"The River Styx," Annabeth murmured. "It's so . . . "**

 **"Polluted," Charon said. "For thousands of years, you humans have been throwing in everything as you come across—hopes, dreams, wishes that never came true. Irresponsible waste management, if you ask me. "**

 **Mist curled off the filthy water. Above us, almost lost in the gloom, was a ceiling of stalactites. Ahead, the far shore glimmered with greenish light, the color of poison.**

 **Panic closed up my throat. What was I doing here? These people around me . . . they were dead.**

 **Annabeth grabbed hold of my hand. Under normal circumstances, this would've embarrassed me,**

"But at present under any circumstances that would've been practically normal" Rachel said smirking at Percy who rolled his eyes.

 **but I understood how she felt. She wanted reassurance that somebody else was alive on this boat.**

"Feelings were alive on that boat" Jess giggled

 **I found myself muttering a prayer, though I wasn't quite sure who I was praying to. Down here, only one god mattered, and he was the one I had come to confront.**

 **The shoreline of the Underworld came into view. Craggy rocks and black volcanic sand stretched inland about a hundred yards to the base of a high stone wall, which marched off in either direction as far as we could see. A sound came from somewhere nearby in the green gloom, echoing off the stones—the howl of a large animal.**

 **"Old Three-Face is hungry," Charon said. His smile turned skeletal in the greenish light. "Bad luck for you, godlings. "**

 **The bottom of our boat slid onto the black sand. The dead began to disembark. A woman holding a little girl's hand. An old man and an old woman hobbling along arm in arm. A boy no older than I was, shuffling silently along in his gray robe.**

 **Charon said, "I'd wish you luck, mate, but there isn't any down here. Mind you, don't forget to mention my pay raise. "**

"Which he will use to buy more suits as if he actually needs it"

 **He counted our golden coins into his pouch, then took up his pole. He warbled something that sounded like a Barry Manilow song as he ferried the empty barge back across the river.**

 **We followed the spirits up a well-worn path.**

 **I'm not sure what I was expecting—Pearly Gates, or a big black portcullis, or something. But the entrance to the Underworld looked like a cross between airport security and the Jersey Turnpike.**

"Seriously?" Piper muttered

 **There were three separate entrances under one huge black archway that said YOU ARE NOW ENTERING EREBUS. Each entrance had a pass-through metal detector with security cameras mounted on top. Beyond this were toll booths manned by black-robed ghouls like Charon.**

 **The howling of the hungry animal was really loud now, but I couldn't see where it was coming from. The three-headed dog, Cerberus, who was supposed to guard Hadess door, was nowhere to be seen.**

 **The dead queued up in the three lines, two marked ATTENDANT ON DUTY, and one marked EZ DEATH. The EZ DEATH line was moving right along. The other two were crawling.**

 **"What do you figure?" I asked Annabeth.**

 **"The fast line must go straight to the Asphodel Fields," she said. "No contest. They don't want to risk judgment from the court, because it might go against them. "**

 **"There's a court for dead people?"**

"Seriously? Why? They're already dead anyway" Leo said

 **"Yeah. Three judges. They switch around who sits on the bench. King Minos, Thomas Jefferson, Shakespeare—people like that. Sometimes they look at a life and decide that person needs a special reward—the Fields of Elysium. Sometimes they decide on punishment. But most people, well, they just lived. Nothing special, good or bad. So they go to the Asphodel Fields. "**

"That will really suck to 'just have lived' to not do something, be someone that could be remembered" Trina said

As a child she always wished that she would be someone who will always be remembered or to do something or create something worth remembering for centuries.

 **"And do what?"**

 **Grover said, "Imagine standing in a wheat field in Kansas. Forever. "**

 **"Harsh," I said.**

 **"Not as harsh as that," Grover muttered. "Look. "**

 **A couple of black-robbed ghouls had pulled aside one spirit and were frisking him at the security desk. The face of the dead man looked vaguely familiar.**

 **"He's that preacher who made the news, remember?" Grover asked.**

 **"Oh, yeah. " I did remember now. We'd seen him on TV a couple of times at the YancyAcademy dorm. He was this annoying televangelist from upstate New York who'd raised millions of dollars for orphanages and then got caught spending the money on stuff for his mansion, like gold-plated toilet seats, and an indoor putt-putt golf course. He'd died in a police chase when his "Lamborghini for the Lord" went off a cliff.**

 **I said, "What Are they doing to him?"**

 **"Special punishment from Hades," Grover guessed. "The really bad people get his personal attention as soon as they arrive. The Fur—the Kindly Ones will set up an eternal torture for him. "**

 **The thought of the Furies made me shudder. I realized I was in their home territory now. Old Mrs. Dodds would be licking her lips with anticipation.**

 **"But if he's a preacher," I said, "and he believes in a different hell. . . . "**

 **Grover shrugged. "Who says he's seeing this place the way we're seeing it? Humans see what they want to see. You're very stubborn—er, persistent, that way. "**

"I really wonder how humans see everything" Will said "Specially with the War, I mean that was crazy how could they have seen it as less that it was?"

"Power of the Mist Will" Annabeth told him "Besides it's better that way."

"But still" Thalia agreed with Will "Don't you ever wonder what they see exactly? I mean we know they're seeing less but how less and what exactly?"

"Just know that when you tell mortals what we see in the demigod world they're going to think you're crazy." Rachel said "Trust me. I know"

"Well what if all those people 'diagnosed' as 'crazy'' are clear sighted mortals after all?" Trina said "Mortals just think they're 'crazy' as they say because they don't know about the demigod world"

"But we can't tell them that" Annabeth said "No one will believe us and besides it will be dangerous for all of us if the mortals knew the truth."

 **We got closer to the gates. The howling was so loud now it shook the ground at my feet, but I still couldn't figure out where it was coming from.**

 **Then, about fifty feet in front of us, the green mist shimmered. Standing just where the path split into three lanes was an enormous shadowy monster.**

"Cerberus" Nico whispered to himself thinking about his father's dog.

 **I hadn't seen it before because it was half transparent, like the dead. Until it moved, it blended with whatever was behind it. Only its eyes and teeth looked solid. And it was staring straight at me.**

 **My jaw hung open. All I could think to say was, "He's a Rottweiler. "**

"He should get a Rottweiler when we get home" Amy told Trina

"After we tell our parents" her sister told her ****

 **I'd always imagined Cerberus as a big black mastiff. But he was obviously a purebred Rottweiler, except of course that he was twice the size of a woolly mammoth, mostly invisible, and had three heads.**

 **The dead walked right up to him—no fear at all. The ATTENDANT ON DUTY lines parted on either side of him. The EZ DEATH spirits walked right between his front paws and under his belly, which they could do without even crouching.**

 **"I'm starting to see him better," I muttered. "Why is that?"**

 **"I think . . . " Annabeth moistened her lips. "I'm afraid it's because we're getting closer to being dead. "**

"Ugh I didn't realize being pessimistic was contagious" Rachel said

"I guess when you're with Perseus for a long time you pick up a few habits" Thalia said

 **The dog's middle head craned toward us. It sniffed the air and growled.**

 **"It can smell the living," I said.**

 **"But that's okay," Grover said, trembling next to me. "Because we have a plan. "**

 **"Right," Annabeth said. I'd never heard her voice sound quite so small. "A plan. "**

"And a back up plan" Leo said

"And a back up plan for the back up plan" Jason continued

"And a back up plan for the back up plans back up plan" Piper finished

"Oh shut up the three of you" Annabeth growled glaring at them who immediately shut up

 **We moved toward the monster.**

 **The middle head snarled at us, then barked so loud my eyeballs rattled.**

 **"Can you understand it?" I asked Grover.**

 **"Oh yeah," he said. "I can understand it. "**

 **"What's it saying?"**

 **"I don't think humans have a four-letter word that translates, exactly. "**

"Bad dog" Amethyst pouted "I'm taking a raincheck on that Rottweiler"

"Whatever you say lil sis" Trina giggled at her sisters antics ****

 **I took the big stick out of my backpack—a bedpost I'd broken off Crustys Safari Deluxe floor model. I held it up, and tried to channel happy dog thoughts toward Cerberus—Alpo commercials, cute little puppies, fire hydrants. I tried to smile, like I wasn't about to die.**

"That's it! That's the spirit people!" Leo said standing up and clapping his hands as if he were cheering in a football game.

"Sit down, Valdez!"

 **"Hey, Big Fella," I called up. "I bet they don't play with you much. "**

"They don't" Nico said "Unless I'm there to play with him"

 **"GROWWWLLLL!"**

 **"Good boy," I said weakly.**

 **I waved the stick. The dog's middle head followed the movement. The other two heads trained their eyes on me, completely ignoring the spirits. I had Cerberus undivided attention. I wasn't sure that was a good thing.**

"It depends actually' Nico told him

 **"Fetch!" I threw the stick into the gloom, a good solid throw. I heard it go ker-sploosh in the River Styx.**

"Way to go, dad" Trina said rolling her eyes "Nice way to impress the dog"

 **Cerberus glared at me, unimpressed. His eyes were baleful and cold.**

 **So much for the plan.**

 **Cerberus was now making a new kind of growl, deeper down in his three throats.**

 **"Um," Grover said. "Percy?"**

 **"Yeah?"**

 **"I just thought you'd want to know. "**

 **"Yeah?"**

 **"Cerberus? He's saying we've got ten seconds to pray to the god of our choice. After that. . . well . . . he's hungry. "**

 **"Wait!" Annabeth said. She started rifling through her pack.**

"There's mommy to save the day!" Amy cheered and at that Leo stood up again

"That's it guys! Go team!"

"I told you to sit down, Valdez and let me read"

 **Uh-oh, I thought.**

"Yeah Uh-oh" Leo grumbled and looked at Piper

 **"Five seconds," Grover said. "Do we run now?"**

 **Annabeth produced a red rubber ball the size of a grapefruit. It was labeled WATERLAND, DENVER, CO. Before I could stop her, she raised the ball and marched straight up to Cerberus.**

 **She shouted, "See the ball? You want the ball, Cerberus? Sit!"**

 **Cerberus looked as stunned as we were.**

 **All three of his heads cocked sideways. Six nostrils dilated.**

 **"Sit!" Annabeth called again.**

 **I was sure that any moment she would become the world's largest Milkbone dog biscuit.**

 **But instead, Cerberus licked his three sets of lips, shifted on his haunches, and sat, immediately crushing a dozen spirits who'd been passing underneath him in the EZ DEATH line. The spirits made muffled hisses as they dissipated, like the air let out of tires.**

 **Annabeth said, "Good boy!"**

"I can't believe that actually worked" Nico said clearly impressed

"She's really good with dogs isn't she?" Trina whispered to her sister who nodded

 **She threw Cerberus the ball.**

 **He caught it in his middle mouth. It was barely big enough for him to chew, and the other heads started snapping at the middle, trying to get the new toy.**

 **"Drop it. " Annabeth ordered.**

 **Cerberus's heads stopped fighting and looked at her. The ball was wedged between two of his teeth like a tiny piece of gum. He made a loud, scary whimper, then dropped the ball, now slimy and bitten nearly in half, at Annabeth's feet.**

"Oh my gods" to say Nico was shocked was an understatement; he didn't actually think that Cerberus would make a scary whimper at Annabeth.

"I guess everyone's afraid of Annabeth, even the dog of the dead" Will said ****

 **"Good boy. " She picked up the ball, ignoring the monster spit all over it.**

"Ew"

 **She turned toward us. "Go now. EZ DEATH line—it's faster. "**

 **I said, "But—"**

 **"Now. " She ordered, in the same tone she was using on the dog.**

A few giggles erupted in the room

"Please tell me she doesn't use that same tone on you" Percy said looking at his future daughters who immediately shook their heads

"She uses it on you though, sometimes" Trina said giggling

 ****"Oh I remember!" Amethyst suddenly shouted "She used it to me once when I ate too much sweets and wouldn't stop"

"You and your sweet tooth" her sister said shaking her head

 **Grover and I inched forward warily.**

 **Cerberus started to growl.**

 **"Stay!" Annabeth ordered the monster. "If you want the ball, stay!"**

 **Cerberus whimpered, but he stayed where he was.**

 **"What about you?" I asked Annabeth as we passed her.**

 **"I know what I'm doing, Percy," she muttered. "At least, I'm pretty sure. . . . "**

 **Grover and I walked between the monster's legs.**

 **Please, Annabeth, I prayed. Don't tell him to sit again.**

 **We made it through. Cerberus wasn't any less scary-looking from the back.**

"Well that's a relief"

 **Annabeth said, "Good dog!"**

 **She held up the tattered red ball, and probably came to the same conclusion I did—if she rewarded Cerberus, there'd be nothing left for another trick.**

 **She threw the ball anyway. The monster's left mouth immediately snatched it up, only to be attacked by the middle head, while the right head moaned in protest.**

 **While the monster was distracted, Annabeth walked briskly under its belly and joined us at the metal detector.**

 **"How did you do that?" I asked her, amazed.**

"and that won't be the last time that you'd be amazed at Annabeth" Thalia winked at Percy

 **"Obedience school," she said breathlessly, and I was surprised to see there were tears in her eyes. "When I was little, at my dad's house, we had a Doberman. . . . "**

"I guess that's why we have a Doberman at home" Trina told her sister who nodded

 **"Never mind that," Grover said, tugging at my shirt. "Come on!"**

 **We were about to bolt through the EZ DEATH line when Cerberus moaned pitifully from all three mouths. Annabeth stopped.**

 **She turned to face the dog, which had done a one-eighty to look at us.**

 **Cerberus painted expectantly, the tiny red ball in pieces in a puddle of drool at its feet.**

 **"Good boy," Annabeth said, but her voice sounded melancholy and uncertain.**

 **The monster's heads turned sideways, as if worried about her.**

 **"I'll bring you another ball soon," Annabeth promised faintly. "Would you like that?"**

"I never got to bring him another ball" Annabeth said

"I could bring it to him if you'd like" Nico said

"Sure"

 **The monster whimpered. I didn't need to speak dog to know Cerberus was still waiting for the ball.**

 **"Good dog. I'll come visit you soon. I—I promise. " Annabeth turned to us. "Lets go. "**

 **Grover and I pushed through the metal detector, which immediately screamed and set off flashing red lights. "Unauthorized possessions! Magic detected!"**

 **Cerberus started to bark.**

 **We burst through the EZ DEATH gate, which started even more alarms blaring, and raced into the Underworld.**

 **A few minutes later, we were hiding, out of breath, in the rotten trunk of an immense black tree as security ghouls scuttled past, yelling for backup from the Furies.**

"Uh-oh"

"Not good"

 **Grover murmured, "Well, Percy, what have we learned today?"**

"You act like you're a teacher Grover" Rachel told him

"No" Jess said "Actually he really sounds like he's from Disney Channel. You know at the end of the show the main character would ask the kids what they learned today. Right Amy?"

"Yes. Grover the Flying Goat Boy from Disney Channel" Amy smiled "You should really write a script about that Trina"

"And then what?" Trina asked

"Then we'll sell it to disney channel!"

"Amy no"

"If you're not writing it I will" Amy huffed and pouted "It will be the next big show on Disney"

 **"That three-headed dogs prefer red rubber balls over sticks?"**

 **"No," Grover told me. "We've learned that your plans really, really bite!"**

"Yes, yes they do" Percy said "But sometimes they work. Sometimes"

 **I wasn't sure about that. I thought maybe Annabeth and I had both had the right idea. Even here in the Underworld, everybody—even monsters—needed a little attention once in a while.**

 **I thought about that as we waited for the ghouls to pass. I pretended not to see Annabeth wipe a tear from her cheek as she listened to the mournful keening of Cerberus in the distance, longing for his new friend.**

 _ **-**_

 _ **Hi guys! Finally an update yey! This took me so long and I actually didn't think I'd be able to update again. But, I really want to finish this story. See you in the next chapter and oh don't forget to leave a Review. It's been awhile but I hope you like this one.**_

 **xoxo,**

 **Chinfev1203**


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